Ode to Sleep
by Exultant
Summary: A girl finds herself in TVD and tries to unravel why and how. Between decisions of changing or not the plot, getting used to a large family, not to endangering herself or the people close to her it's certain that this 'adventure' won't be easy or simple. One thing she does know, things are not what they seem in TVD, she just doesn't know just how much that also applies to her.
1. 001

_I'll stay awake,_

 _'Cause the dark's not taking prisoners tonight._

 _Why am I not scared in the morning?_

 _I don't hear those voices calling,_

 _I must have kicked them out, I must have kicked them out,_

 _I swear I heard demons yelling,_

 _Those crazy words they were spelling,_

 _They told me I was gone, they told me I was gone._

 _But I'll tell them,_

 _Why won't you let me go?_

 _Do I threaten all your plans?_

 _I'm insignificant,_

 _Please tell them, you have no plans for me,_

 _I will set my soul on fire, what have I become?_

 _I'll tell them, you have no plans for me,_

 _I will set my soul on fire,_

 _What have I become?_

 _I'll tell them._

 _Please tell them, you have no plans for me,_

 _I will set my soul on fire, what have I become?_

 _I'm sorry._

Ode to sleep – Twenty one Pilots

 **A.N.: I know that I should probably be working on the update of my other story, but once the plot bunny gets a hold of you it's hard to shake it off. I hope you guys enjoy it and I do promise that there's going to be a lot of plot twists and unexpected things happening. Though, it might take a while for it to actually happen. Anyway, feel free to drop a review and share your thoughts :3**

* * *

When she opened her eyes and found herself in a location she didn't know, she assumed that she was dreaming. It was a bedroom, white walls all around and a huge bed – that looked more comfortable than anything she had ever seen before. There was a board of some sort filled with pictures that she immediately analysed. It had around 200 pictures of all sizes and it came with no surprise that she didn't recognize any of the faces. Well, almost. Caroline Forbes was there in the middle of the two people that most appeared on that board. In fact, she appeared a couple of times. Sometimes with the girl that had colourful hair – she had counted at least four colour changes in her hair, her natural blonde (at least that was what she assumed), pink, red, silver and now blue – sometimes alone and often with the other guy. Also, when she analysed more carefully she could spot child Caroline and even baby Caroline in the midst of the pictures. There was also one in which Caroline, the girl (sporting her pink hair), Bonnie and Elena were grinning in front of the Mystic Fall's High school.

She rubs her eyes, maybe this was the way her brain was reminding her that she had to update her Vampire Diaries fanfiction, or one of the devoted readers had managed to enter her subconscious with one of their 'Please update!' and now she was having this weird dream. Well, the dream was fairly normal regarding her other dreams, there weren't any fairy tale characters running about and she wasn't in a boat in the sky, planning to get treasures. With a last glance to the pictures, she starts analysing the rest of the room.

Whoever room this was, it was messy. Not messy like hers usually was, with books and tea cups all over the place, but with clothes, shoes and notebooks and a giant amount of pencils all over the place. There were detailed drawings – which in her 'I'm not an expert' opinion where brilliant – of a lot of things but mainly of people whose faces she had seen on the board. She was reaching for another of the notebooks when she caught her reflection and for a few seconds she was stun with her mouth open thrown between freaking out and thinking where the hell she had seen that face previously – apart from the pictures. She had once read that the faces that appear on people's dreams are faces that people see somewhere, that the human brain was incapable of making up faces – she wasn't completely sure if it was true or not, but she didn't remember ever seeing this girl before.

The girl that was looking at her from the mirror was nothing like she was. She was shorter, had black eyes – which she simultaneously found pretty and made her miss her green ones – her hair was cyan, a much brighter shade of blue than she had previously seen on the photographs – and she had to touch it just to make sure that the hair was as soft as it looked, and it was – and her pale skin had freckles, lots of freckles that were particularly condensed on the left side of her face. She touched her face where the smear of freckles was more prominent half expecting to be able to feel it. She was feeling lightheaded, this was a surreal expression seeing a different face reflected. A face she did not know – even the way that the nose and eyebrows scrunched in confusion was different. Oh, she just wanted to see her face.

The door opens suddenly making her jump backwards. It was the guy that she had seen on the picture. He shakes his head with a grin on his lips, quietly closing the door once he was inside of the room. His eyes sweep the place and he snorts.

"Cass will kill you when she sees this mess," he comments. _Cass?_ Whatever face she was making made him laugh. "C'mon Ollie, she told you to clean up the mess."

"Uh, sure," she mumbles as she starts feeling lightheaded. She had to sit or she'd fall, god, this was a really strange dream.

The guy quickly approaches her and gives her a really worried look as he supports her weight. "Ollie, what's the matter? You're so pale." His free hand was running on her face, touching her forehead, under her chin – probably checking her temperature. Is she didn't feel like she'd pass out at any second, she'd probably swat it away. "What is it? Did you get in another tiff with Alex?" _Alex? Who the hell are those people?!_ "Ollie. Ollie?!" She was growing limp in his arms. "Cass hurry, somethin' wrong with Ollie."

She was half wondering how he knew her name and why he was calling her by the same nickname her grandmother always called her. As far as she could recall she never had a dream like this but maybe the fact that she was about to faint would wake her up.

There were a lot of noise and movement around her now. The guy had brought her to bed and was running his hand worriedly on her hair, tugging her to him till her head was resting in his shoulder. There were at least four people – excluding her and the guy holding her – in the bedroom now. A guy that was at the door rocking on his heels as if he didn't know what he was supposed to do, another one at her feet holding her hand with his fingers pressed on her wrist, a girl – well, woman, she looked older than everyone else – that knelt ad her other side and was touching her face almost tenderly and another guy at the back ground jumping around in a frenzy. They all looked like siblings, the guy holding her and the one that was fidgeting at the door had the same black eyes whereas the rest had really dark brown eyes – molten chocolate eyes.

"What happened?" The woman was looking to the guy holding her and glancing at the one at the door. "Did you do something again?"

The guy looked offended. "Why is it always me? You think I'd harm her?" His words were harsh and he seemed like he was having a hard time controlling his temper.

"Cass, you know that neither take their pranks too far," the guy that was at her side commented. He turns his attention to her, a small encouraging smile appears on his face. "Ivy, honey, what are you feeling?"

The only thought on her mind was that no one had ever called her Ivy before. "Dizzy," she whispers. "Like I'm about to pass out. I… Look, I don't know what is happening. I think I'm waking up," she adds trying to calm down the weird people her dream had conjured.

Everyone gives her an odd look. "Walking up?" The woman looked even more worried. "Tom?"

"I don't know Cass," the guy holding her replied. "When I woke her up she was normal. She said she was going to take a shower and when I returned to help her clean up… she was like this."

She tries to move but no one allowed her. "This is really weird, I want to wake up now."

The guy at her feet gave a stern look to the one at the door. "Did you hex her?"

The guy snorts. "What is this? Harry Fucking Potter? I didn't _hex_ no one. My last prank was melting her crayons whenever she touched them. I didn't and wouldn't do shit to her brain!"

"Language." Cass said in a tone that made her remember her grams. "You sure Alex?"

The guy that was frenetically moving around the room placed his hands on Cass' shoulders. "He wouldn't joke about it. Alex said he didn't do it so he didn't. Maybe it's because of her… thing."

Whereas everyone in the room seemed to know what the guy was referring to, she didn't. "What thing? God, what thing?!"

The guy holding, or rather Tom, her started rocking her body, "Shh Ollie," he coos. "It's okay, it's okay."

"It's not," she insists. "What thing?!" She demands loudly.

The guy at her feet that she still didn't know the name squeezed her hand gently. "Did you take too much magic again?"

"What? What magic?" Olivia was feeling like her brain was about to burst. These people didn't make sense, the room was too full and too loud and she wanted to return to her own bedroom. She snakes her hand out of Cass' hand and pinches her leg, squealing in pain. Cass gives her a stern look before grabbing onto her hand. "I need to wake up now, this is scaring me."

The guy at the door… well, Alex was getting pale. "You're… scared?" he was giving her an odd look and was pacing as if he wanted to get close to her but at the same time didn't. "You're scared maggot?"

She glares. "Of course I am. This makes no fucking sense!"

Alex widens his eyes. "What the hell is wrong with her?!"

The pacing guy walks to him and places his hands on his shoulder. "We're gonna fix her."

"Fix her now," he demands as swats his hands away. He sits next to her with a huge frown. "Look at her! She's scared, she's never scared!"

The one at their feet sighs. "Calm down Alex, you're freaking her out." He turns his attention to Cass. "I'll get the grimoires and you get Daph. We'll sort this out." He gets up and looks to Tom. "Take care of her, the rest of you, out."

Alex grips onto her arm. "I am not going."

"Alex!"

He narrows his eyes. "Fuck no, I'm staying with Fred."

"Language," Cass says sternly. "She needs to rest-"

"Let him," the guy that was at her feet tells her. He looks to Tom. "Look after them."

Alex snorts. "This isn't the time to baby us. Go see what the hell is wrong with her!" He turns to her. "Did something happen Fred?"

This guy was making her head spin. At first it seemed that they didn't get along – if the bit about them pranking each other hinted at something – but now it seemed like he was about to lose his shit. "I just wanna wake up," she whines.

"You're awake Ollie," he tries to reason with her. "C'mon twin-o." He grins. "Snap out of it, you're scaring Alex."

The other people give them a look before leaving. "Yeah, Tom's right. You're really scaring me."

She furrows her eyebrows. _Twin?!_ "What twin? I'm an only child! This makes no sense!"

He stars rocking her body again as Alex gives her pained looks. "You're not, you got me and our brothers and sisters. The whole pack, remember?" He was telling her gently. "You and Alex are the babies…"

Alex snorts. "We totally aren't. We're the coolest," he declares. "Sometimes you tell me that you'd rather have me as a twin than him," he confides, trying to make her laugh. "We'd be the havoc twins."

"As if," Tom mumbles with a small smile on his lips. "He's always trying to steal you away." When she doesn't reply they both frown. "You think she needs magic? Maybe her brain is going haywire…"

"She has the necklace." Tom briefly touches the necklace on her chest making her slightly jolt away. "It's still full."

"This makes no sense," she complains again.

Neither pay attention to her. "How about the nightmare she had last week?"

Tom shakes his head. "That was because of Carl's stories… He scared her off with the things the old convent did… she was restless and afraid."

"What stories?"

Both Alex and Tom frown. "You should rest Ollie," Tom tells her as he gets up and pulls her to the pillows. "Alex and I will be here, okay?"

"Yeah." Alex hold her hand and suddenly she was feeling something entering her. It was like she had sucked something out of him, something kind of thick and it made her hand jolt and a scared look appear on her face.

"What the hell was that?"

Alex had a partially pained expression and his lips where a tense line. "You took a bit of magic maggot…. You're feeling better?"

Better wasn't the word she'd use. She was feeling something pulsing and coursing through her veins. "Magic?" She then gaps. Right, she was having a dream about the vampire diaries… Maybe… maybe she was like Kai? That was seriously weird. She was looking at her hand half expecting something to happen when Tom patted her head twice.

"Magic, remember?"

Then the most amazing thing and most frightening thing happened. The pencils that had been previously scattered around the room began floating. When her eyes widen in wonder and fear, Alex grins and joins whatever Tom was doing. Soon they were moving around her, twirling in the air before falling and rising in the air again. Both brothers seemed to be focused but had small smiles on their lips. The pencils soon started to make up words. Like Olivia, that soon became Olive and then maggot, magic and lastly smile damn it. And she did, she giggled feeling strangely happy that the two strangers were making such an effort to bring her joy. Her giggles seemed to have broken the focus of one of them since half the pencils fell.

"Remember?"

She shakes her head. "But it was really cool," she admits. "Thank you."

Alex rolls his eyes before kicking off his shoes and joining her in bed. "We used to do it all the time, sometimes you'd be a bitch about it and take magic from us so you could join."

"Alex," Tom mutters sternly.

He shrugs. "When she isn't careful it hurts like hell, you know that."

"Don't be an ass to her." Tom looked stern and sort of angry. "She isn't okay."

Alex seemed a bit ashamed. "Sorry maggot."

"S'okay," she mumbles uncertainly. "I never had brothers before but my cousins totally act like this sometimes."

Tom looked pained again. "You don't have cousins," he tells her gently. "Just brothers and sisters…"

She didn't know what to say. She was fully aware that she did in fact have cousins, four, but she didn't want to upset Tom – her dream brother. Alex is the one that breaks the silence, his voice was uncertain and low, "Who do you think you are?"

That was easy. "Olivia Harper." They furrow their eyebrows. "I'm 23 and I live in Windlesham," she trails off. "I got two dogs, Captain Harkness and Doctor…"

"She's scaring me now," Alex mumbles as he looks to Tom. "I'm scared Thomas. What the hell is wrong with her?"

"I don't know," the other replies quietly before joining them in bed. "Ollie… you aren't 23. You're 16. Our birthday is in October." He pauses. "I have no clue about Windlesham and we got no dogs. Amy is allergic to animals."

"I'm not 16," she declares fiercely trying to get up. Neither allow her to do so. "Bloody hell, I'm 23 and I'm finishing my masters and working in a library!"

"Bloody… Hell?" Alex and Tom were giving her odd looks.

"Yeah." She makes a pause to give both of the pointed looks. "Bloody hell," she confirms. "I'm not a teenager!"

Tom runs a hand on his hair. "Ollie, you are a teenager."

"I'm not!"

"Stop it," Alex half yells. "Arguing doesn't help," he adds more quietly. "Look, we're all confused… Maybe you… got amnesia?"

"Amnesia," Tom repeats. "Why does she think she's another person then?"

Alex shrugs. "Copying mechanism?"

"I'm not copying with anything." She scrunches nose. "Apart from being a siphoner apparently and being in vampire diaries," she adds as an afterthought.

Both of them looked alarmed. "What?" They jolt from the bed and she knew she had said the wrong thing. "Vampire Diaries?"

"What's a… Siphoner?"

She glances to the brothers, both seemed sort of scared. "Uh, someone that siphons magic," she mumbles. "What this body does…"

Alex rolls his eyes. "Your body, you mean."

"No." She narrows her eyes. "I'm not this person. I'm… I'm not short," she declares petulantly. "And my hair isn't blue…"

"Told you you'd regret painting it blue," Alex comments snidely.

"And my eyes aren't black!"

Tom frowns. "You need to calm down," he comments as he starts caressing her arm.

"Fred," Alex calls her out quietly. "You were freaking out about magic and now you know what you do?"

Tom was also giving her and odd look. "What was that comment about vampires? Did Alex try to scare you again?"

Alex immediately crosses his arms over his chest. "I didn't. After the last time I swore it off."

"No, Alex didn't do anything," she mumbles. Both of the brothers give her strange looks – Alex seemed pained. "What?"

"You never call me Alex." The frown in his face was massive and it made her feel bad. "Pesk, Lex Luthor or Allie when you really want to piss me off, but never Alex."

"I'm sorry," she mumbles. "I don't…"

Tom sighs. "Her head isn't right Alex, leave her."

"What do I call you when I don't wanna piss you off?"

Alex grins. "Your most handsome brother."

She rolls her eyes and laughs. "Doubt it."

"Liam," Tom replies as Alex narrows his eyes. "You call him Liam, his middle name," he explains.

"Liam," she repeats as if she was testing the name. "I like it."

"You should," Tom tells her with a grin. "You chose it." Her eyes widen in disbelief. "We both chose his name."

"Shoulda picked something more amazing," Alex teases them.

She rolls her eyes. "Why does he call me Fred?" She scrunches her nose.

"Middle name," Tom answers. "Winnifred."

"What kind of name is Olivia Winnifred?!"

"Yours," Alex declares with amusement. "Our parents were nut heads, they gave us all weird names."

She nods. "Where are them by the way?" She had been curious since neither had mentioned it and now she regretted it. Both of them tense at her question. "Uh, sorry."

Tom is the first to recover. "It's okay. Mom passed a bit after Alex was born… a… a vampire killed her and now Albert… uh… our father… is trying to kill him."

"Dramatic," she mumbles. She then cringes, what the hell was wrong with her. "Uh, sorry."

Alex rolls his eyes. "Never mind that. Albert is a pain. He ditched us with Cass and Daph and left."

"Let's not speak about that," Tom mumbles. "Cass and Daph lose their shit when we speak about him."

"I get it," Olivia states with a small frown. "This dream is really detailed… I never had a dream with so much backstory before."

Alex rolls his eyes. "It's not a dream, stop that."

"Alex," Tom calls him out warningly. "She's not okay, she's not doing this to piss you off."

"I know." His voice was quiet. "It's just really weird. She seems okay and then she doesn't. It scares me." He looks to her. "So get your head straight… I don't even care if you mock me."

She frowns. "I wouldn't," she promises. "You're scared 'cause you like your sister, that isn't anything to mock Liam." She said his name carefully. "You're a good kid."

There was a smile on his face. "You're also a kid Fred, stop with that shit."

"You're such a wanker," she mumbles rolling her eyes.

Alex raise an eyebrow as Tom laughs. "Wanker? What the fuck, you think you're British?"

"I know I am." She makes a pause. "Another reason why this throws me off so much. My accent is all wrong."

"You wish," Alex states rolling his eyes.

Tom was quietly observing them. "Hey, say something."

She furrows her eyebrows. "Uh? Like what?"

"Anything, speak for a bit," Tom asks of her.

"It was a matter of time till the craziness passed to the other," Alex comments.

She blinks. Tom had a serious expression. "Okay, I can do that. Even though I'm not really sure why… It's a bit of an odd request, I trust you have a reason for it." She bits down her lower lip. "I'd like if you told me the reason behind the request too. And when to stop… mindless rambling when I in fact do not want to ramble makes me feel weird."

"You speak funny," Alex declares looking at her oddly.

"There's also…" He takes a deep breath of air. "You're not joking, are you?"

"Why would I joke?" She narrows her eyes feeling strangely defensive. "This is not funny, I am not laughing. This is bloody strange and I'm scared out of my wits. I don't understand what's happening." She lowers her gaze and starts fidgeting with the bed sheets. "I don't get why I'm not awake…. Or why I'm having this dream. It's like I lost my plot."

"You're not dreaming," Alex half yells with annoyance. "Stop that!"

"Alex!" Tom was glaring. "If you can't stop yelling I'll force you out." Alex opened and closed his mouth a couple of times. "Good." He turns his attention to Olivia. "You should try to rest for a bit. Whenever Cass and Daph find something they'll get us."

Tom was now lying down next to her and so was Alex. She was comfortably snuggled in the middle of them – and uncomfortably given that she really didn't know the guys next to her. Despite her mind being all over the place, trying to understand what in god's good name was happening, she could feel her body relaxing and lulling her into sleep. The last thing she hears is Tom whisper: 'We're here, we're here Ollie.' _Sad that I won't ever see him again, he's a good one._ She thought that once she woke up she'd be back at home, probably late for work.

She was wrong, of course. When she woke up the room was dark. She was draped above a body and there were arms around her. She immediately jolts to a sitting position, waking up the two boys that had fallen asleep next to her. While Alex was loudly yawning, Tom was stretching. They had cautious looks on their faces and she was seriously scared now. She had dreamed, she had dreamed of the girl. The Olivia in her dream had been chasing Alex with mud, they were kids on a backyard that she didn't recognize. There were people laughing loudly at the scene but once she fell, there were no more laughs. Alex, Liam had stopped laughing and now had a scared expression. Tom was by her side with a frown, a girl she didn't recognize was pulling Liam away from her and two other girls – Cass and someone else – were pulling her upright. Tom was holding her hand, telling her not to cry anymore. The guy that had been at her feet was cleaning the blood on her knee with a cloth as the other guy – the jumpy one – was speaking with Liam, who was now also crying. She gave Tom a look and he nodded and went to the guy and Liam, he pulled the latter to her and she smiled before extending her mud filled hand.

"You're feeling better?"

She shakes her head. She was feeling worse, she was in panic… Her heart was racing and she was scared. "Why… Oh god, what is happening? Why am I not home?!"

Alex seemed to be taking her panic worse. He was now fidgeting, getting up and pacing as he glanced to them. "Should have worked."

Tom grabs her and pulls her into a hug. She trashed in his arms, she didn't want to be hugged, she just wanted to go home! "Shh, shh. We got you Ollie. Calm down."

"I want to go home," she whines loudly as she makes an effort to not bawl her eyes out. "Home!"

"You're home," he tries to reason with her.

Alex stops pacing and walks to her. "Fred, look, you gotta calm down. Cass and Daph won't let you out of the house," he tells her seriously. "We're all freaking out and you know how they get."

"I don't!"

Tom sighs tiredly. "He's right. You should calm down. If they see you like this you're not leaving the house anytime soon."

"We're all protective of you," Alex explains. "Since you're different… and…" There was a strange look on her face, almost mournful. "Mom also…" He stops as if he had said something wrong. "You… you're our baby."

"I am not!"

"You are," Tom states almost sternly. "You used to be really sickly," he says as an explanation. "And because of… the thing… we are always worried. There isn't much about what you are and we don't know what happens… what could happen… if you could die at any moment 'cause you don't have magic."

"I'm not," she says confidently. Well, at least from what she knew on siphoners… not that she knew a whole lot, but there wasn't anything about them dying because they didn't have magic. "I'm not going to drop stiff because of that."

"How would you know?" Alex was glaring. Once again it seemed like he was having a hard time controlling his temper. His hands were clenched and it was like he was ready to punch someone. "Just calm down." His voice was strained and he was taking deep breaths. "We'll sort this mess and you'll be fine in no time."

Tom nods. "You hungry? Daph made your favourite."

"Uh, what is my favourite exactly?"

Alex rolls his eyes. "Shrimp pizza."

It wasn't. She had to fight the urge to frown. Her favourite was chips and fish since she always ate them with her grandparents whenever something good happened – not that this was any cause for celebration. "Oh."

"It… it isn't?"

Both of the boys were looking to her expectantly. "No," she confesses. "I mean, I like it… but it's not my favourite." They seemed sad and she was now regretting telling them the truth. "I'm sorry."

"You are our sister," Alex declares flippantly. "Nothing wrong with changing your favourite food." It was like he was trying to convince himself. He grabs her hand, holding it tightly, and pulls her with him. "They're all asleep now, so you should have a bit more of peace. It's just Tom and I, okay?" She nods. "We'll try to explain things the best we can while you eat."

"You should eat as well."

He rolls her eyes. "We ate, you were the one that slept the whole day. Cass and Daph tried to contact our ancestors but didn't got a reply." He looks to her with a frown. "How come you don't lose your shit over this but whenever we speak about your favourite food or we being your brothers you lose it?"

She didn't know what to tell him… or even if she should in fact tell them what she knew. "Sorry."

"You got nothing to apologize," Tom says. "We'll sort this out." He looks to Alex as she sits down in an unfamiliar kitchen. "I'll start. Our last name is Jackson…"

The tale was really long and it seemed like they partially believed that she had no clue what was happening because of the details they shared. Sure, they'd never guess that she had seen this universe in a TV and most likely thought she had some weird case of magical amnesia – Tom told her that Cass, their older sister, was going through the grimoires that Olivia was studying trying to see if she had performed a spell that had gone wrong.

She had seven brothers and sisters – three sisters and four brothers – and they had lived in Mystic Falls for the most part of 13 years. Cassandra and Daphne were the eldest sisters – also twins at the age of 30 – and had been the ones that taken care of the rest when their father vanished in his hunt for the vampire that had killed their mother. Then there was James, or Jimmy as she usually called him, he was 25 and worked at the hospital; Carl and Amanda where next – 22 and 20 respectively – they were both still finishing college and the latter would be home in two weeks. Thomas and Olivia where the next kids and Alex was the youngest at 15. Her best friend, besides the two brothers (Alex had mocked Tom's words, dismissing it but when she seemingly believed he admitted that it was true, that she was one of his best friends) was Caroline Forbes, Tom's girlfriend. That induced her in a slight panic because Caroline didn't have a boyfriend called Tom in the series, she'd date Matt and then Tyler, Klaus briefly and would end up settling with Stefan – or she thought, but the eight season could easily destroy that. She didn't know how that changed things, what influence that would have in the events of whatever season she was at… god, it could actually ruin everything.

"Hey, hey. What's wrong?"

She looks to Tom not knowing what to say. _Your girlfriend… she's gonna be a vampire and date a werewolf and then a hybrid… whose sort evil but really attractive… also, no one is real… plus, you dating her can ruin the plot_. But she couldn't really say that, could she? "I remember Caroline," she admits.

"You're fucking kidding me," Alex mutters. "You remember her but not your brothers?"

She regretted, once again, her words. "Not like that. The name is familiar… that's all… It's the blonde girl on the photos, right?"

Alex still seemed sour whereas Tom was nodding encouragingly. "That's good. I'm pretty sure that soon you'll remember the rest."

"Got any questions?"

She had a million but she didn't know how to ask him without aggravating them. "Okay, so I'm apparently 16… Where going on our junior year?" Tom nods. "Okay, what other friends do we have?"

"Uh, we are close to the Bennet's." That meant Bonnie. "But the youngest doesn't know she's a witch. Sheila thinks her powers are going to manifest soon." So, first season or their presence had somehow thrown back the plot? "We sort of watch over her," Tom explains with a slightly weird expression. "But neither of us are close to her."

Did he mean them or them and her? "I'm not?"

Alex is the one that replies, "Uh, you guys are friends but not anything out of the ordinary. You're… selective with your friendships."

She furrows her eyebrows. "What?"

Tom frowns. "She's an untapped witch, you fear that you could siphon from her unwillingly… if you got distracted or something."

Alex nods. "You keep everyone at arm's length," he elaborates. "You don't get on with a lot of people."

She was a loner? She must have been giving them odd looks because soon Alex was laughing. "Hey, he's putting it all wrong. First other witches… tend to frown upon you." She nods. From what she had seen witches didn't like things that defied nature. "And, well, you always tend to be careful with who you speak with. Caroline, however, declared when we were five that she was your best friend and chased you around till you agreed." A joyous laugh escapes her lips. She could imagine Caroline Forbes doing something like that. "You guys are close, especially since I date her…"

"Does she know?"

Tom shakes his head. "No, secret. Her mom does though. Cass works at the station… the council is unware, but the Sheriff knows about us. She made a big deal out of me dating Care and you were actually the one that made her stop."

She wondered how she had accomplished that. "Okay…"

"Oh." Alex looks to her with his eyes widen. "Caroline is trying to convince you to join her bitch squad."

"What?"

Tom automatically slaps his head. "Cheer team," he corrects.

There was a look of distaste on her face that made Alex laugh and Tom roll his eyes. "He's really stereotypical," Alex confides with a teasing tone. "Football player, golden boy, golden boy dating a cheerleader and all that shit."

"For fuck sake Alex."

They were both narrowing their eyes to each other. Okay… There must be something there. Maybe brother rivalry? "How about you Liam?"

He grins. "I'm obviously not. Couldn't care less for that shit."

"You are a football player," Tom points out snidely.

He snorts, unimpressed. "And basketball and I've dabbled in baseball, but the team is shitty."

"Dabbled," Tom mocks.

"Oi, you're getting weird on me," she says loudly attracting their attention. "Why are you getting weird on me?"

"Nothing," Tom mumbles looking ashamed.

"We just compete a lot in sports," Alex offers. "We've been spending more time together since the last months. Tom's always sucking face with Caroline and that shit gets weird."

While she laughs Tom narrows his eyes. "You make it sound like I never spend time with you guys." He turns his attention to her. "We do, lots of time."

Alex waves his hand dismissively. "Yeah, yeah. She's your twin… no need to get upset."

"So, what other friends do you guys have?"

Alex shrugs as Tom rolls his eyes at him. "Let's just say that you're not the only one that's selective with your friendships," Alex offers.

"We know a lot of people," Tom adds. "But we aren't close to many."

She nods, understanding their point. Hiding the family secret shouldn't leave much room for friendships. "Uh, you draw a lot," Tom says. "You're really good." That would change because her drawings were shitty. "And this year you're trying to learn how to play a guitar."

"I am?"

Tom nods. "Carl's teaching you. He picked it up at college."

They continue speaking till she yawned loudly. Alex loudly questioned how she could be so sleepy since she'd sleep 18 hours but shrugged it off when Tom narrowed his eyes. They left her in her room and wished her a good night. She was fidgeting, feeling weird due the unfamiliar environment, when Alex entered the room. Without offering her any explanation, he got under the covers, next to her and told her to sleep. She woke up at his snigger when Tom joined them. Even if they weren't really her brothers, she couldn't help but to smile.

She woke up with Cass shaking her. Alex wasn't in the room anymore but Tom was. Tom was also speaking for her, telling Cass that she had been better when she woke up but that her mind was… fuzzy. Cass, in her turn, was giving a look that was equal parts of worried and angry – she assumed that it had been a spell that she had performed that had gone wrong – and informed her that they'd go through her books today to find it. They then left her to dress herself.

Dressing a different body was strange. She felt silly for feeling ashamed- almost as if she was perving on an unknown girl – it was juvenile, she knew that. But if she was honest, there was nothing normal on this situation. It was like some of the stories that a normal girl ends up in the Vampire Diaries universe… Sure, it was sort of cool… she was going to meet people that she had grown fond of, however, she had liked them when she at safety. The Salvatores, the Originals and the other countless people had their brilliant moments… but they could easily kill her if she did something to draw their attention. Specially Damon – if she was indeed on the timeline of the first season – he'd snap her neck and stroll to a bar for drinks.

Alex interrupts her minor freak out by knocking on the door violently. After making sure she was decent, he grabs her hand and drags her away – she wondered if he did that shit often – to the kitchen. Unlike last night, the place was chaotic. Tom was helping Cass with breakfast, the girl she assumed that was Daphne was placing the tableware and Carl and James – she didn't know which yet – where arguing over bread.

Alex nudges her as he mouths _Pay attention_. "Carl," he calls out loudly. The guy looks to him with a puzzled expression. "Don't you get tired of that argument?"

"He never learns," James comments. "I'm telling you, you shouldn't eat so much white bread."

Carl scoffs. "Racist, that's racist." Everyone rolls their eyes as if they were used to this.

Olivia shakes her head and squeezes Alex's hand. "Thanks."

He gives her a non-committal shrug. "Not a problem maggot."

"Pesk," she mumbles with a grin as he guides her to her usual seat.

Daphne squints her eyes. "You two are quiet this morning."

"Her brain's all wrong," Alex states with an expression that continuously hardened as the other brothers looked at them. "I not a dick to her."

"Language!" Cass shouts sternly. "You're putting money on the swear jar," she adds narrowing her eyes. "I've let it slide yesterday since we were all in a panic, but go on. Five dollars."

"C'mon Cass," Alex whines.

"Go!"

He gives her a pleading look. "Uh, Cass." Cass immediately turns her attention to Olivia. She gives the 'I'm an innocent child' look she'd used to give her grams when she wanted something. "Don't make him… He's just… worried and trying to act though." Everyone was startled – even if Alex was grinning like a moron. "What?"

"Uh… Okay." Cass gives Alex a pointed look. "Not again, you hear?"

"Yup." He turns to her. "Thanks Fred."

James sits at the table and snorts. "You two are weird this morning." His attention was on her now. "You usually just cover Tommy's ass… Any reason why you're doing with Alex?"

Daphne – who meanwhile had finished setting the table – sits unceremoniously. "Yeah, creeps me out when you're not bickering."

"Leave them be," Cass says authoritatively. It was clear that she was the voice of authority in the house. "I always welcome when they're at peace." She was giving Alex another pointed look. "You sure you didn't do anything to her and this is you acting out of guilt?"

"I told you I wouldn't." He was clenching his fists and jaw. It seemed like he had some sort of anger issues. "So stop accusing me."

James sighs. "He wouldn't Cass. He never took it this far, it if was him he'd have come clean."

"You know he sometimes takes things too far," Daphne comments. "Like that time he locked her in the bathroom, we were lucky she was able to absorb the force field or she'd have been locked inside the house the whole day."

"This isn't the same," Carl states. "That's bad… but this is her brain."

She looks to Alex, who abruptly gets up from the table. "I was seven," he shouts. "I never did something like that again and when I returned and I didn't see her I was scared shitless," he adds. "I didn't do this."

"Let's all calm down," Tom says loudly. "We're scaring her."

Six pairs of eyes were observing her. Even if yeah, having them yell was sort of disconcerting, she wondered how Tom knew that it was… upsetting her. "Uh, what's for breakfast?"

Cass smiles. "Pancakes, with your favourite syrup."

Alex and Tom were looking at her. She forces a smile on her face. Pancakes weren't her favourite breakfast… sure, she did like it… but it didn't beat bacon and eggs. "Thank you."

By the middle of the breakfast she realized that it would take her a while till she got used to all the noise and that she didn't really know how to act. Alex and Tom spoke with her and did help her whenever one of the other ones questioned her with something that she'd have no way of knowing – she declared that those two where her favourites of the lot of them – by either replying or distracting them.

While Alex and her cleaned up the kitchen, after breakfast, he introduced her to Cass' whiteboard. Every week the chores would be divided by them – and since the vacations were starting that also included Carl and Amanda – taking in consideration their schedules. He gave her the example of James, since he did work long hours at the hospital, he was usually the one in charge of trash duties and on the weekends he'd cook for them so Cass could have a bit of time for herself. There were also several dots that Alex explained that corresponded to their activities – school, work, 'play dates' (to which he used air quotes) and so on and so forth.

"Cass' a bit of a control freak," he ended with.

"She just likes to have everything organized," Tom countered. "You're up to meet Care today?"

She wasn't and she guessed that her expression transmitted that because soon he was frowning. "Hey, it's okay… We were supposed to go to the pool today. It's not a big deal. We can do that on another day."

"I'll take care of her while you play boyfriend and girlfriend," Alex declared.

Tom was now narrowing his eyes and she felt that whatever this was, it was a bit more than sibling rivalry. "Okay, what the hell is wrong with you two? It's like you want to jump at each other's throats."

"We're good," Tom says somewhat tensely.

Alex, in turn, rolled his eyes. "He just has his priorities wrong." Once again he was narrowing his eyes. "Your twin." He was now mocking him. "Lost her shit and you worry about your girlfriend. She barely knows how to act with our family and you wanna drag her to Caroline? Shit would hit the fan," he finishes with his arms crossed over his chest. It was if he really didn't approve of Caroline. Whenever he mentioned her name his expression would harden and his tone would become harsh. It made Olivia wonder why.

"I think that familiar faces would jog up her memory," Tom mutters every bit defensively as Alex.

"Of course…" He snorts and rolls his eyes. "Got nothing to do with the fact that you wanna shove your-"

"Enough you two," Cass declares startling the teenagers. Olivia wondered just when the older woman had got inside of the kitchen and just how much she had listened. "Ivy isn't going anywhere. I'm sorry Tom, but I don't feel comfortable. She did a spell that backfired." She was now giving a pointed look to Olivia. "Something you're going to promise never to do again."

"I promise," she says quietly. Even if she wasn't sure if the other Olivia had done, but Cass' tone and posture reminded her so much of her grams scolding her, that she just had to promise.

"I know all of you were eager to this day… But Ivy isn't going anywhere today, I'm not letting her out of my sight… I already called work and I'm not going. Carl and Daph are working on a new spell to contact out ancestors and we'll see what we discover. Okay?"

By her tone, the okay hadn't been a question but a statement. "Okay," Tom confirms. "I'll call Care to put it off."

Olivia shakes her head. "No, you can still go. Tell her I… uh… have the flu or something."

Cass smiles. "Good. I'll be in the living room, you guys finish cleaning so meet me there Ivy."

Tom looked divided. "Just go," Alex mutters. "Go hang with _Care_ that I got this."

"I'm not leaving her."

"No?" Once again was if the younger brother was mocking. "Why not? Don't you _love_ spending time with Caroline?"

She groans loudly. "Stop acting like wankers," she orders them with her eyes narrowed. "You go with Care to the pool and if there's trouble we'll call you."

Alex was smirking. "Yeah, go hang with Care." She promptly slaps his stomach. "Now you're acting like the maggot I know."

She rolls her eyes. "It's okay Tom."

There was a sad smile on his lips. "If you say so. Call me if you need anything, all right?" She nods her head and after glancing at the pair, Tom leaves.

She turns her attention to Alex. "You want tell me what's the issue between you and him?"

"No." She narrows her eyes and crosses her arms over her chest for good measure. Soon Alex was groaning. "I don't like her, okay? Last year she was chasing everything with a dick, myself included, and now she's with him? And it's just hypocritical. He's always telling me to be careful with who I try to befriend and here he is with a girlfriend that's probably gonna break his heart. Family should come first. Family came first before."

She frowns. "Care isn't like that."

He rolls his eyes. "So you tell me… But she's shallow."

She shakes her head. "She's a teenager, she'll grow up Liam." He gives her a sceptic look. "I promise that she will."

"Sure and Cass will stop telling me off for cursing."

She snorts. "That will never happen."

It was on her fifth day that she saw Caroline. The last couple of days had been spent with Alex and Tom telling her everything there was to know about most of the areas of her life – Cass had declared this an unprecedented case of magic amnesia even if she was pretty sure that such things didn't happen – and now everyone was pitching in. Also, every night she'd dream about the other Olivia. Random parts and bit of her childhood that mostly revolved around Tom and Alex – seemed like they were inseparable when they were kids. If she was honest, she was growing envious of the person she was inhabiting the body. She had a tightknit family and everyone was really supportive whereas she just had her grandparents.

Tom had gone to the Grill to meet with Caroline and Alex was going to drop her there before he went to his basketball training. The day wasn't just noteworthy because it was the first time she met Caroline but also because she saw Jeremy, Tyler and Vicki. They weren't together… The first had been sulking, kicking up the ground as he went god knows where, whereas Tyler had been making out with Vicki stopping briefly to call out to Alex – which raised a lot of questions.

"What's up Jackson?"

Alex had rolled his eyes, placing himself a bit in front of her. "Not much. You Lockwood?"

A lazy grin appeared on his lips. "Not much." He was giving her curious looks. "What's up with the hair?"

By his tone she could easily infer that he was trying to get a rinse out of her. She sighs, as if she was utterly bored – something she had picked up with one of her college teachers. "Darling I do know that you're challenged but as you can see I dyed it, again. It's not that hard," she drawls out. Alex immediately started laughing, Vicki seemed to be confused and if she didn't stop glancing so fast to her and Tyler would seriously hurt her neck… whereas Tyler didn't know if he should laugh or throw her a punch. "Fuck off."

She offers him a pleasant smile. "Right back at you dear. Have fun." She then looks to Alex, who was still laughing, and taps his hand. "Tom and Care are waiting."

He nods and stops laughing with some cost. "Later Lockwood."

"See you at practice," the other male said before locking lips with Vicki Donovan.

Once they were at a distance, Alex was beaming. "I seriously loved your comeback."

"Was it that different?"

He nods. "You usually just tell him to fuck off and carry on, but that was amazing." He pats her arm. "So proud of you maggot."

She laughs. "You really are pesky."

He left her at the door and took off after pressing his lips, with a bit of reluctance, on her forehead. She took a couple of breaths of air before entering the Grill, trying to psych herself up. She wouldn't fuck this up, Caroline wouldn't hate her and call her a fraud and nothing terrible would come out of their meeting. The Grill was much bigger than she had first expected it to be but she found Tom and Caroline quickly enough, mainly because the girl shouted her name and nearly knocked everything to get to her. She was beaming as she tightly hugged her.

"Calm down Care," she mumbles as she pats her back.

She frowns. "Don't you dare! I was worried and he wouldn't let me go for a visit sayin' you were really bad," she declares as she places her hands on her hips giving a pointed look to Tom that was now looking sheepishly to her. "You are okay now, aren't you?"

"She's fine," Tom replies with a grin. "Stop fuzzing."

"I am not fuzzing. I'm a concerned best friend. And concerned best friends are allowed to worry immensely." There was a pout on her lips that Tom quickly kissed into a smile.

Olivia shakes her head. "I'm here kids, let's not forget my presence."

Caroline rolls her eyes before dragging her to the table. "How you've been? You are such a miserable sick person that I was confused when you didn't text me a million of times to complain."

Of course she didn't… sure, everyone was convinced that she was sick… magical amnesia and all that… but she didn't know what to say or how she normally acted. "I'm sorry Care."

"She slept most of the time," Tom elaborates, giving more credibility to everything.

"Aw." Caroline hugs her again. "My poor baby."

"I'm okay now Care," she says with a wide smile. Seeing Caroline act like this with her did bring her joy – even if she had never pondered if they'd be friends if she existed in this universe – she was one of her favourite characters and it was simply amazing. "So calm down your knickers."

She was giving her an odd look. "My knickers? Please tell me you haven't been binge watching British shows, you always speak _rubbish_ for a couple of days."

It was a bit more than that. "You know how she gets." Thankfully Tom had intervened because she really didn't know what to say to that.

"Put a sock on it," Olivia says petulantly after showing them her tongue.

Caroline rolls her eyes. "Anyway, have you spoken with Elena?" There was a frown on her face. "She's been avoiding me… I think…"

Once again Tom intervened. "You know that Ollie rarely speaks with Elena, we were at the funeral but that was about it."

She sighs. "I know. I'm just worried. She told us the other day that she won't go to summer camp and while I understand… I fear that she's gonna stay behind… Besides, maybe she just needs something to distract her so she doesn't spiral on depression."

"Care she's going to be fine. It will take time but she'll get better," Olivia promises as she squeezes Caroline's hand. "Okay?"

Caroline smiles. "Okay. Okay, you're right. She just needs time, like you said. Do you want to join us?" Olivia immediately shakes her head making Caroline pout. "Why not? It's fun, a good thing for when we're all applying for college and—" While Caroline listed all the other reasons Olivia had to join the Cheer Squad, Olivia considered that she couldn't really believe she was back at being a high school student. That she'd have to go through it all again. And worse, it wasn't like she knew much about the history of America – god, she was going to have Tanner on her ass. "Libbie?" Caroline was giving her a worried look and exchanging glances with Tom. "What's wrong?"

"My head hurts." It wasn't a complete lie, just thinking about it did make her head hurt a lot. "I'm sorry for zooning out."

Caroline grabs her hand. There was a hint of a smile on her lips and when she spoke, she did so confidently, "You're gonna to be fine. I'm going to make the Forbes super-secret casserole and you'll eat it and feel better."

Despite herself, Olivia laughs. "Secret casserole?"

Caroline nods with a grin on her lips. "Super-secret," she confirms. "Like, I'd have to kill you if you ever saw the recipe super-secret."

The rest of the day went without any noteworthy occurrences. Her time in the Grill with Caroline and Tom eventually came to an end – when Alex came to get her, which seemed to be something strange because Caroline was looking suspiciously to them (Alex payed it little to no attention) – and their dinner at home was also better than the previous. Cass was no longer treating her like she thought that Olivia was going to break at any given moment and she ordered her around as she cooked for their family. Also, speaking with them was starting to get easier even if she thought that it was really strange that everyone seemingly went with the 'magical amnesia' thing and didn't ask further questions.

On day seven she freaked out. Every morning for the past week, before opening her eyes she thought that she was back at home and well, she wasn't at her other home. Also, in the routine she had somehow created that consisted of every morning thinking of home to see if when she woke up she'd be there she noticed that she was starting to… forget things. She was also having recurring dreams about the other Olivia's life, minor things… That revolved about her childhood. She jolts from the bed and marches to Alex's bedroom, knocking on the door urgently. He answered the door looking like he had just woken up but as soon as his eyes focus on her he pulls her inside looking worried.

"What is it? What is it?"

She throws herself to his arms. "I'm forgetting stuff. I no longer remember my address and my neighbours or my grams address."

He was patting her back and sighing at her words. "It's going to be alright Fred, I promise you that."

"No it's not. I'm not home. I don't know how to get home…"

He abruptly removes his arms from her and narrows his eyes. "You are home," he tells her sternly. "This is your home so don't you ever say that again." His expression softens when he notices that she was about to cry. "Look, you're my sister." He scratches the base of his neck looking slightly uncomfortable. "And you're important to me, so don't say that. It's like you don't care about us anymore." She did understand his point but she _wasn't_ his sister… She was another Olivia that for some reason was inhabiting her body. Before she had a chance of saying any of that – which she knew that would anger him to so extent – he pulled her to his bed. "How about a magic show, uh?"

She nods her head as she makes herself comfortable. "Okay Liam. Amaze me."

Like the other time, he made everything that was on his room float. He shaped the t-shirts as animals – badly done but what mattered was the intention – and at some point it was like he was doing a puppet show for her. She was laughing so loudly at his silly plot that soon Tom, Carl and Cass where at the door observing them.

"Nightmare," Alex lies as the objects fall.

Tom frowns. "You could have come to my bedroom Ollie."

She felt like she had crossed some sort of barrier. Tom and Alex where looking expectantly to her, to hear her words and she was sure that she resembled a fish out of water. "Next time come to mine," Carl declares breaking out the silence. "My puppet show puts his to shame."

Alex snorts. "As if."

"We all know that the best is mine," Cass states with a smile. "You're okay now Ivy?"

She nods her head and jolts from the bed. "Thanks Liam." She presses a kiss on his forehead and walks to the other brothers. She also kisses on the other brother's cheeks before leaving the bedroom. "Breakfast on me people," she declares as she skips down the stairs.

Tom is the only one that follows her. "Are you okay?"

She nods her head and offers him a smile. "Want to help out? I'm thinking eggs and bacon and maybe you would do those waffles we had Tuesday."

He smiles. "Sure." Even so, he grabbed her by the hand before she had a chance to enter the kitchen. "Why Alex?"

She scratches her neck. "Uh, I've been spending a lot of time with him." When he frowns she raises her hands ready to take back her words. "No, no. It's just that you've been busy. Practice, doing chores and mine too, I've noticed. So, I didn't want to wake you up. You're leaving soon for the summer camp and… well."

Tom sighs and pulls her into a hug. "Sorry, it's just that sometimes it's like he acts like he's-"

"Nop," she mumbles interrupting him. "You two are my favourites so no bashing."

Tom nods. "I'll take care of the waffles."

"Get on with it."

Even if outside she seemed like a teenager that was happily cooking breakfast for her family, the truth was that she was freaking out. Forgetting things wasn't good, it couldn't mean anything good and it made her want to bawl her eyes out. What if she forgot her grandparents, her dogs… her life? Also, she was sure she was changing the dynamic of the brothers and she really didn't want to cause any trouble. She felt like laughing and crying (and even throwing things against the wall in both happiness and sadness), she felt juvenile and silly but she felt like they were also family which she was sure that was a really foolish notion and that, one way or another, wouldn't end well. Because they weren't… not really.

While Tom and Alex went to summer camp – it would last exactly a month and both seemed really reluctant to leave her – Cass helped her with magic, going through the rules (something that neither brother had mentioned) and making her practice a few basic spells. Now watching people doing magic and doing it was completely different. She had expected it to feel a certain way and even to be a certain way but in reality her expectations weren't met. It wasn't easy – but then again she didn't really expect it to be – but it was more foreign than she had expected. First she started noticing that people's magic had something specific about them and that if she was used to it, she could recognize it. For instance the titbit of magic in her necklace came from Cass – to be used in emergences; Cass and Daphne had stressed and that also emergences didn't mean pranks. She did wonder though, from the stories everyone told her about the ongoing prank war with Alex it seemed to revolve with them using their powers on each other… and if she didn't used the necklace Cass had set up for her… just where was she getting the magic witch juice? She would later discover that all brothers gave her titbits of magic weekly since they were scared that she'd die without it. She had no idea where that particular idea had come from or even why, unlike she had seen on the show, this Olivia's family didn't see her as an abomination. If anything they were painfully protective of her and if for some reason she didn't seem okay, they'd all gang up on her to try to fix whatever was wrong.

As time passed not only did she became closer to all of them – making her own connections to them – but more memories seemed to be missing and more information on Olivia Winnifred Jackson had appeared on its stead. She could no longer remember her face, just that she had green eyes, or her grams face… she was dreading the day she'd forget about her voice… So, which almost made her laugh and cry at the same time, she decided to start a journal. Her paranoia that the family she seemed to gain was so protective – maybe protective enough to go through her stuff – she even started to learn Russian to hide what she was writing in the diaries. Of course that in theory that had been way easier than she had first expected it to be. Learning a new language was hard (especially one that implied learning the alphabet) and at times it was incredibly frustrating. By the end of the summer, just when her second time in high school was about to start, she was guessed that she had the same grasp of the language as a toddler.

She had also met other characters, well, sort of since they were all under the impression that they all knew each other. Daphne had taken her to the Gilbert residence – during the time that Tom and Alex had spent at summer camp – to pick up Jenna. They apparently knew each other from their college days and Daphne was going to give her a tour of the place. In the brief time that it took Jenna to get ready, since she had seemingly forgotten about hers and Daphne's plans, she saw Jeremy and Elena. Jeremy grunted as a form (weird one, is she was being honest) of greeting her – the kid seemed high as a kite and she wondered why wasn't anyone acknowledging it – before going upstairs. Elena had been sitting at the kitchen table, fiddling with her _journal_. She had been polite, she greeted both of them before excusing herself and going out of the door. When Jenna returned, Daphne informed her that her niece had gone out which made the aunt sigh and rant about how she wasn't cut out to be a parent and just how much trouble she was having in getting to them – no one wanted to speak and all her attempts where immediately shut down.

She met Liz when James, in one of his rare days off, had gone with her to deliver Cass' food. The conversation wasn't long, they briefly discussed the start of a new school year and how everyone was 'growing up'. The fact that she was now a teenager and could no longer do what she pleased did take its toll at times, especially when people treated her like she had no clue what it was like to be an adult – which she most definitely had.

Caroline had also dragged her – when she returned – to a girl's day out, demanding that her brothers (making a point of saying both of them) were out of her plans. It was just going to be her, Caroline herself and later on the day Bonnie and Elena. She had been really scared and almost made up some sort of illness so she could escape it, but she really didn't want to disappoint Caroline. The blonde seemed to miss her and her puppy dog eyes were, sadly, beyond effective on her. So, she did and she was taken to Caroline's house where they had played dress up, or well, Caroline played dress up with her. Breakfast, a shopping spree and a lunch and then they met with Bonnie. Elena had seemingly ditched them and Olivia had to prevent Caroline from marching to the Gilbert Household and dragging the other girl outside. Bonnie, well, Bonnie was also different from what she had expected. It was normal, she gathered, on the show it mainly focused on the friendship of the three girls and how she acted with them wasn't going to magically transfer to her. They were on friendly terms but it was clear that they weren't exactly the best of friends and that her friendship with Caroline wasn't as strong as she had always assumed it was – maybe her presence there had really fucked up the plot. Still, in an 'I can't believe this is really happening' way, she did have fun.

She had been incredibly nervous about the start of the school year, being careful to revise all the previous material since she really had no clue about most of the American History – which, obviously made Alex mock her continuously – and also because she knew that it signalled when the troubles would start for everyone in the city. She also didn't know exactly what she was supposed to do. Should she change the plot? Try to save as much people as she could? Should she leave it alone and just intervene whenever she or the new family of hers got involved? And how would she go on about it? It wasn't like she could say how she knew it – and even if she said her life could take drastic turns, she was scared of what some of the vampires would do if they discovered the depths of her knowledge – or even if people would listen… or if the plot wouldn't try to reset itself… Also, the more she changed the less she would know.

"Snap out of it," Alex mutters. She had become aware that even if he woke up every day at 5 a.m. to go on a run (like clockwork, really) he was not a morning person. "Just lookin' at you is givin' me a headache."

Tom rolls his eyes. "She's nervous."

Alex scoffs loudly, shooting him a 'really?' sort of look. "I can tell that. Don't need twin connection."

"Enough guys." They were always bickering, it was one of the things that had changed. While previously – before she coming to this body for whatever reason – had been Olivia and Alex, now it was Tom and Alex. "Yeah, I'm nervous and scared I'll mess it up."

"You're not going to," Tom tells her reassuringly. "I'm gonna be there every step of the way and so is Care."

Alex promptly rolls his eyes, like he usually did when Care's name was mentioned. " _Care_ doesn't know what's wrong with her."

"Moral support," Tom insists with a glare.

The other scoffs before turning his attention to her. "Look maggot, you're gonna do fine. You nerded up this summer and if it all fails you can cheat out of Tom. He can pass you the answers."

"I don't want to cheat!" He shrugs as he continues to pull her in the direction of the school. Every step she took the more nervous she felt. "I just… I want things to return to normal."

She no longer said she wanted to get back home, even if it was sort of implied. First it was because it hurt the Jacksons and second… she sort of wanted to take them back with her. On the months they had spent together she… She became incredibly fond of them and while it still pissed her off when they coddled her, which was almost always, they were an incredible family. An incredible loving family and she felt truly lucky to be amongst them. Even if this was some sort pf psychosis – one of her most recent theories – these guys were amazing and when or if she ever returned, she would definitely miss them.

"Things are fine," Alex declared like he usually did whenever she said that. "You're fine. I'm fine and golden boy has his golden girl and they're both fine."

Tom nods. "We're all fine."

"Dorks, you're all dorks." She smiles as she squeezes both of their hands. "Thank you."

"Not a problem maggot."

She rolls her eyes. Maggot and pesk were becoming more of pet names than nicknames to annoy each other. "You'll meet me at lunch?"

Alex laughs as Tom rolls his eyes. "Nah, you are going to eat with the golden couple. I want no part in that shit. The bitch squad is there."

She nudges him. "I'll protect your innocence."

"Just come," Tom says as he looks to Alex – who seemed partially surprised. "Clearly she wants you to be there."

Fearing that this would turn into something uncomfortable, she grabs both of their hands. "I want both of you there. I sort of need you guys," she admits, her tone tinged with embarrassment as she cast her gaze down. "Uh, I know… I'm clingy but this all seems weird and I feel at ease with you two."

"You owe me." Alex smiles before letting go of her hand.

She shows him her tongue, in a rare display of childishness. "You love me _brother_." And, even if both seemed surprised – so was she, it was the first time she ever referred to him as her brother and she really hoped that the other Olivia wouldn't be too pissed off to share her brother with herself – she really meant it. "So do I," she declares. "I do love both of you even if you often make me lose my plot."

"We do," Tom says with the widest grin she had seen on his face – well, unless she counted whenever he was with Caroline.

Alex rolls his eyes with a hint of a smile on his lips. "As if, you always cramp my style."

"Teenager angst brother of mine?"

He promptly whacks her head and complains but she was no longer paying attention. In fact, the world could have burst in flames and she wouldn't have noticed because they had gotten to school and Stefan Salvatore was there. Stefan Salvatore was there and he was looking to her. And just like that she knew that troubles were starting and, that one way or another, she would most likely be involved in all the drama.


	2. 002

_._

 _I can't stand it I know you planned it_

 _I'm gonna set it straight, this watergate_

 _I can't stand rocking when I'm in here_

 _Because your crystal ball ain't so crystal clear_

 _So while you sit back and wonder why_

 _I got this fucking thorn in my side_

 _Oh my God, it's a mirage_

 _I'm tellin' y'all it's sabotage_

Sabotage – Beastie Boys

 **A.N. : I hope you enjoy the new instalment. Thanks to all those that followed, favorited and reviewed the story. As usual feel free to share your thoughts, I'm always happy when I hear what you think of the story!  
**

* * *

The stare off with Stefan Salvatore, if it could even qualify as such, couldn't have lasted more than five seconds - ten at most - but their significance was almost inversely proportional. Well, for her at least, Stefan just looked at her and carried on. Sure, it had been something trivial to most people, however, most people in this universe weren't aware just how much trouble was coming. He was the change that symbolized the future changes - if it made sense. He was the first step in the long stairwell of what would change in the city... With him came Damon and then Katherine, the Originals, Silas... and so on and so forth. While for Olivia it felt like the Universe had shifted, like the green light for troubles had appeared, for most people it was a regular Monday morning. She was once again freaking out. First she knew things – important things, things that could very well mean her death… even if she was sure, or almost sure, that Stefan wouldn't kill her others could very well end her (or use her, she still hadn't decided which outcome was the worst). Plus, she had knowledge that even Stefan didn't possessed, like his friendship with Klaus and his relation with Rebekah - in all fairness that could be said of most characters in the show seeing that she knew what consequences their decisions would have. Second, she was fully aware of what he was doing… or what he was going to do! And sure, it was amazing and she'd have the chance of seeing the story unfold right on in front of her eyes… but then again, it wasn't like the mess – all of them – was like having a picnic in a park. People died, people were going to die… maybe even she would die or Tom and Alex… or one of the Jacksons. With her presence she didn't even know what could happen. Plus, it wasn't just her, it was seven other people that the show hadn't covered. Seven others that could easily change the plot - and she didn't even want to consider what her foreknowledge could do!

"Fred!" Alex loud voice breaks her trance. Tom and Alex were looking worriedly to her, their eyebrows were furrowed and both were close enough as if they expected her to pass out at any moment. "What's going on?"

 _The world as you know is about to change_ , she wanted to say. But she couldn't so she settled with, "I... I'm just nervous."

While Alex seemed unconvinced, Tom was now frowning. "You'll do fine, don't worry so much."

"Are you sure? You go really pale on us," Alex mumbles as he glances to her face again as if he was searching for proof. "I'm sure it's going to be fine but if you still feel like shit, come find me and we'll ditch school."

She offers him a small smile. "I feel like shit, can we ditch school?"

Tom laughs. "Good try but no."

"Hey, it's her choice," Alex immediately mutters. "If she's not ready, she's not ready."

"But she is, she's done the work… her friends are there and she's going to do fine," Tom declares narrowing his eyes a bit. "If Cass discovers no one will hear the end of it and she'll never leave the house again." While his words seemed to be an exaggeration, she was aware that they weren't. The Jacksons acted really protective - so protective that it almost looked like insanity - whenever Olivia (the other and now her) seemed ill or strange.

"Don't start." Her voice was loud and broke their glares, just like she had intended. When they started bickering it usually took a while till they stopped on their own terms. "Thanks pesk."

He waves her off, the tension on his body gradually easing. " _Tommy_ is right," Alex admits with some reluctance. "However, if you're not up for it fuck it."

Tom groans. "If she's not fine I'll be the first to get her away." Instead of the argument starting over, they were now merely glaring at each other.

"Can we go now?" She gives both a sheepish smile. "Before I lose my nerve."

"Care's also waiting for us."

Alex rolls his eyes and gently squeezes her hand. "That's my cue. See ya at lunch maggot."

She nods before turning her attention to Tom. "Lead the way." He automatically flashes her a smile before walking inside of the building.

They walked in almost absolute silence to Caroline. It wasn't uncomfortable which she assumed that it was strange. While he and the other Olivia had literally know each other their entire existences, she obviously didn't, feeling awkward would be perfectly natural... expected even. But she didn't, she felt comfortable with Tom. Sure, their family dynamics had changed since she got here. She wasn't as close to Tom as the other had been and she and Alex were in more pacific terms than in the past. And for one reason or another, she felt more comfortable speaking about her memory loss with the latter. The first always seemed so depressed that she preferred not to speak with him about it. Alex told her off, he always stressed that she was their sister... she was their own blood and flesh (which was debatable, sure, biologically he was absolutely right... but the person inside wasn't Olivia Jackson) and, even if he interrupted her a lot, he allowed her to vent. The only time she had gone to Tom instead of Alex, she had felt like the shittiest person alive. Unlike the younger brother, he didn't interrupt and allowed her to say whatever she pleased but there was always a heart-breaking expression in his face - which had led her to seek out Alex instead.

Caroline was chatting with Bonnie and Elena when they reached the corridors. Tom's face, and her own, immediately brightened and as soon as the blonde spotted the twins, she squealed and ran to them with a wide grin dismissing the conversation she was having with the two other girls. Said girls seemed to be used to it, merely rolling their eyes at the display with small smiles on their lips.

Olivia's hand is automatically grabbed as Caroline pecks Tom's lips several times, she then proceeded to hug her. "My favourite twins." The girl seemed so happy that Olivia was glad, or mostly glad, that the plot had been messed with. Caroline did really know how to make someone feel liked. "How are you?" Her gaze jumps from one twin to the other with a slightly expectant expression.

"Good, good," she replies as she nudges Tom. "This one was missing you."

Caroline grins before planning a kiss on his lips. "I missed you too." Tom chuckles at her declarations - that seemed almost solemn - as Caroline pulls them both to Bonnie and Elena. The girls had small smiles on their lips. "And we're all together again." She pauses as Matt passes them., avoiding eye contact with Elena. The only thought on Olivia's mind was that this was more awkward than it had been seen in the show. "Sorta."

Bonnie nudges her, the fact that she disapproved could clearly be seen in her face and posture. "Caroline."

The blonde frowns. She looks apologetically to Elena. "Sorry, sorry. It just left my lips."

Knowing that this could quickly turn sour, Olivia greets the other girls. "Good morning."

"How have you two been?"

Tom shares a glance with her, a meaningful glance, before turning his attention to Bonnie. "The usual, thing's been hectic. How about you two?"

"We're fine," Elena says with a smile on her lips. A small, unconvincing smile. "I'm fine."

Olivia nods. "That's good. Now if you excuse me, I really have to drop my things." She gives a small shake to her bag that was full.

"Bye," Elena says with the same small unconvincing smile.

"See you later," Caroline quips as she and Tom follow her. Once they were at a distance she sighs. "She doesn't look fine."

Tom squeezes her hand. "It takes time Care."

"I know, I know. I'm just worried. She barely speaks with me and she never wants to go out." She then stops speaking and walking. "Oh, that's right. Bonnie and I are planning a get together at the Grill today, **we** 're all going." It seemed like the we also included Olivia.

"Sure."

Caroline smiles brightly. "Great! Maybe we can make everything get back to normal." Olivia had to fight the urge of laughing. Little did her blonde friend knew that things would never again be normal - well, at least cording to her current definition.

Olivia grins. "I'll drop this off alone and get our schedules. So use your time wisely and get it off your systems."

Caroline laughs, shaking her head, whereas Tom merely smiles. "Thanks."

"Don't mention it."

Olivia had hoped that the time it took her to drop her things would be enough for Stefan to leave the School Office. Even if he was one of the supernatural beings that she was least worried about - she assumed that he was one of the few that wouldn't outright kill her if he noticed that something was strange with her - she didn't really want to cross paths with him. She still didn't know what where the changes that her presence and the Jackson's would have and she really didn't want to mess up things more. Messing up in this universe would mean death, her death.

However, the plot, fate or whatever forces where controlling this, seemed to have other plans. It seemed like he had just finished compelling the secretary, at her intrusion he smiled. The sun glasses where still on his hands (she really didn't know why he had been wearing them in the first place) and it seemed like he was waiting for something. She had to control her urges of either rolling her eyes and mumbling I haven't seen anything – which would most likely guarantee that the vampire wouldn't leave her till he discover what she was hiding – or raising her eyebrows and asking Don't you really have better ways of going on about this? Instead, she focused her attention at the secretary trying to stop her internal freak out since Stefan Salvatore was next to her in the flesh.

"I'm, uh, her for my schedule and my brother's…"

The woman smiles and starts speaking, interrupting Olivia - she had been about to tell her her and Tom's name. "Of course. How is everyone?" She didn't know if the woman was being polite or if she actually knew the Jacksons.

"Everyone's fine, thank you for asking." She forces a polite smile, trying to will the woman into moving which didn't seem to be happening.

The woman nods. "How's Carl and Amanda? It seemed like just yesterday they were running around these halls." Okay, so she knew the Jacksons…

"Oh, busy with college." The woman started to move then and she barely controlled her urge to sigh in relief. She really couldn't explain, but she wanted to run away. Okay, she was being paranoid since this brief encounter couldn't really change the lot that much… right? "Carl already left and Amanda will leave soon."

"Send my regards dear." She hands her two papers. "There you go, yours and Thomas'. Alex already dropped by… in case you're wondering."

She smiles. "Thank you so much. Have a nice day."

"You too." When she turns her back she's called out making her heart go in a frenzy. "Olivia, wait a bit."

She closes her eyes before turning back making an effort to maintain the smile on her face. "This is the new student… Maybe you could show him around?"

She wanted to snort. Stefan would have more luck if he went alone. She almost got lost in her way here... "Sure."

"I'm Stefan. Stefan Salvatore."

"Olivia Jackson," she introduces herself politely. She waves to the secretary before leaving the office. "Uh, if I'm honest I'm not really the best person to give you a tour." She didn't even know why the woman had asked that of her. Was it his doing? Vampires could compel people without speaking… but he was weakened… still, it wasn't like she was an expert. But maybe it had just been a weird coincidence.

"It's okay, you don't have to feel obliged," he tells her gently. Oh, he was throwing her off so much. And she really wanted to touch his hero hair. Was it soft as it looked? Was it stiff? Where there some sort of wires beneath all of that?

She waves her hand trying to seem like a normal high school student. "It's perfectly fine. Being the new kid can get pretty intense." Before he could reply, she notices just where they were. That was right, he was supposed to bump into Elena on the bathroom around now if her memory served her right – and she seriously hoped that it did and that her memory losses hadn't affected what she knew of the plot. "Uh, those are the bathrooms… which is something that everyone should know," she babbles awkwardly as she tries to decide what would be the best course of action. "I mean, everyone pees…" She trails off. He was giving her an amused smile, with his eyebrows slightly scrunched as if he was trying to understand what was happening in her brain. "You know what… all this talk off pee ticked my biological needs. So… yeah…" She then hurries inside of the bathroom before she said something else stupid and before he commented. _Stupid, stupid, stupid. What the hell are you thinking?!_ The only thing that served her as a consolation was the fact that it was better to look stupid than messing with the plot.

She really didn't know just how long their meeting was supposed to last, but she takes her time. Her phone kept vibrating so she reads the texts that Caroline, Tom and Alex had sent her. **'something wrong?'** , **'why are you taking so long?'** ; **'where are you?'**. Caroline's where also in the same line as Tom's: **'we'r tired of waiting 4 u!** '. Alex was just to check up on her: **'u doin gud?** ', to which she immediately replied **'I'm fine. Your text speak hurts me, kill it with fire.'**. His reply had been automatic **'Snob. Call if you need me** '. With a smile on her face she tells the other two that she was on her way, that she had just shown the new guy the way to the lockers – well… almost.

She had expected him to be gone by the time she left since she had really taken her time, but he was there, leaning against a wall that faced the bathroom door. She didn't know if he had bumped into Elena or not and it wasn't like she could ask. She seemed weird enough as it was and she really didn't need a vampire getting curious about her. If she had learned anything with the TV series was that it never ended well when a vampire got curious about someone. So, she'd have to be careful… especially with Damon. Whereas Stefan was an okay guy – or sort of, but at least he did try his hardest – she was sure that with Damon things could get bad really fast. Oh, she felt like her heart would jump of her chest just thinking about it. Maybe she should just avoid him for as long as she could. He had no emotions, he was on a mission that wouldn't end well… and she really didn't want to die. Sure, maybe dying would take her back to her world… or maybe she'd just die. She rather not risk it.

"Olivia?"

She blinks her eyes. Stefan had his eyebrows scrunched and was observing her which made her feel even more fidgety. "Sorry about that," she says pleasantly as she tries to shake off her gloomy thoughts. "If you don't mind, we're meeting my brother and his girlfriend."

He smiles as he shakes his head. "I don't mind that."

"Okay, they're somewhere around…" She isn't the one that finds them. Caroline – she was starting to think that the girl had some sort of powers – spots her and drags Tom with her.

"There you are. We've been looking for you." She then smiles as she looks to Stefan. "Hey. I'm Caroline and this is Tom."

Tom merely nods in acknowledgement as he observes his sister. "Stefan," he says in turn. He follows Tom's gaze and frowns. "Sorry for…"

"Nonsense!" Caroline claps her hands excitedly effectively interrupting whatever Stefan had been about to say. "We'll show you around so you don't get lost on your first day!"

"Thank you," he says politely.

Caroline nods as Olivia hands the schedule to Tom. She had already taken a peek at it and they shared all of the classes. "Oh, lemme see!"

Olivia laughs despite feeling like she was going to freak out – this was being too much – as she hand her the paper. Having Caroline and Tom there did make her feel a bit better. "Calm your knickers."

"My knickers are just fine, thank you," Caroline mumbles as her eyes trail the paper. She then grins, she was pleased. "We're together." She quickly hugs Olivia and kisses Tom. When they laugh she smiles bashfully. "Sorry about that."

"It's okay." Stefan still had the smile on his face. "You seem to be very close."

"We are," Caroline confirms. "You know that I met her on the first day of school too?" Stefan furrows his eyebrows as he glances between the pair. "She had gotten separated from her brother and she was sort of freaking out and-"

"You came to the rescue," Tom finishes with a grin on his lips. He shares a look with Olivia – who found the story adorable. "A week later she declared them best friends."

"Yup." Caroline was beaming. "And we've been ever since. So, fear not. You're in good hands Stefan." And with that she began walking.

Olivia rolls her eyes. Tom had told her part of the story on her first day in this body - she just hadn't known that it had happened on her first day of school (or was it kindergarten?). "We were kids."

Caroline sighs. "The point stands, doesn't it? I'm experienced with these things."

"I'm lucky then."

He wasn't but it wasn't like Olivia could tell him that. "Seems like it."

Thankfully Caroline took charge of showing the nooks and crannies to the guy because Olivia did not know the place. If anything it had been good that secretary had asked her to show him around - now she also knew her way around. Caroline and Tom also kept talking so things weren't as awkward as before and Olivia could finally relax a bit. Still, it was disconcerting. She had never imagined that one day she'd be walking down these halls with Caroline and Stefan at her side. In the midst of their wandering, they pass by Alex who says something to the guy he was speaking with (she had never seen that guy before and that made her wonder if he was an extra or a new character that had been introduced) before joining them.

"What's up maggot?"

She smiles as Caroline rolls her eyes and points out the classroom to Stefan. "All's good pesk," Olivia tells him. "What have you been up to?"

"You mean in the thirty minutes we weren't together?" She nods making him laugh. "It was so strange not to hear you nag me every five seconds." He had a faux disconcerting expression that disappeared when she scoffed, a teasing smile appeared in its place.

She smacks his arm. "I do not nag."

Her smirks. "Sure you don't."

"That's our brother, Alex," Tom introduces him to Stefan when he realized that the younger teenagers didn't seem inclined to acknowledge their presence.

"Hey," Alex mumbles glancing to the Stefan.

"Stefan," he introduces himself. "Nice to meet you."

"Yeah." Alex didn't seem to share the sentiment, he merely turned his attention to her. "Later maggot." With that he walked away.

"Later!" She yells and watches him wave his hand. He walked back to the guy he had been previously speaking with and they vanished in the crowd.

Tom was sighing. "Uh, sorry about him. He's a bit of a dick."

"That is an understatement," Caroline chimes in.

Olivia knew that they did not get along, however, she didn't like them bashing him. "Leave him be. He's a teenager, most teenagers as strange, rude creatures."

Caroline rolls her eyes. "Very well. " Caroline turns her attention to Stefan and smiles. "I think we showed you most of the place. Is there anything particular you'd like to see…" She trails off as she continues looking to his face.

"No. I think you guys did a thorough job. Thank you."

Caroline beams proudly. "Good. If you have questions or anything you can totally come for us." She gently nudges Olivia a bit more to the front – she had to fight off a horrified expression off her face. "We'll set you straight."

Stefan laughed uncomfortably. "Thanks."

"We should probably go," Tom declares once he finishes observing his sister. He wasn't sure if she was quiet because of the new guy or if it was because of them being inside of the school. "You're welcome to tag along Stefan."

She wanted to smack him. "Uh, I have History as my first class, maybe you could point out the way?"

"Tanner." There was a positively tart expression on Caroline's face. "I didn't miss him."

Tom nods. "Guy's an ass."

"A pain in our asses," Caroline corrects. "You're so unlucky to have him on your first class."

Stefan furrows his eyebrows. "That bad?"

"Worse!"

Olivia wanted to laugh at Caroline's dramatic nature, however, from the little she had seen, Tanner was indeed an ass. "She's right," she comments. "He's…"

"Annoying," Caroline offers.

"Stupid," Tom mutters.

"I was going with strict…"

Caroline rolls her eyes. "Mrs. Halpern is strict. That guy is a dick." Olivia raises her hands in mock surrender. "Please, you hate him just as much." Olivia never liked the guy, but she couldn't say that she hated him. But then again, she had never been his student or dealt with him personally. Maybe she used to hate him, it wasn't like she had Olivia Jackson's memories…

"We'll take you there," Tom states.

And then things were back as they were on the show once they got there. Stefan was looking to Elena, who was looking to him, as if no one else was in the room. Caroline sighs, dramatically rolling her eyes, and waves good bye to Bonnie, then the trio left.

The classes went as she had predicted them to. Even if she was in no way used to – or prepared – to be a high school student, she dutifully took notes and did her best to pay attention to whatever the teachers told her. If anything, the time she had spent at college would make this a piece of cake. It was also great having Tom and Caroline there. They didn't sit next to each other in some of the classes, but at least they were in the same room so she wasn't completely alone – in this unknown environment. It wasn't the school itself that was scary, she knew that (well, horrible things were going to take place there) it was mostly the fact that she was in this universe.

It was surprising (not that surprising) but she even bumped into Stefan during the day – not literally and she hoped it never to happen because she didn't really know how the witchy vision thingy that had happened with Bonnie (would happen was more correct) worked. Unlike it had happened in the show, Caroline didn't really ask his entire life story. She asked about his family, receiving the same answer as she did on the show and after gushing about a bit about the Salvatore Boarding house, she merely asked about how his day was being. Tom also asked a couple of questions, mainly about his classes – apparently they were going to share the English class – and if he was thinking about joining any of the teams, to which he replied that he wasn't really planning on it. She had to fight off the urge of snorting and telling him that in a couple of days he would indeed join the team to Matt's and Tyler's – and Tanner's - dismay.

After the brief encounter, Alex met with them so they could have lunch. Lunch was more awkward than she had predicted. There was clearly some history there that she was missing. Caroline and Alex seemed like they couldn't stand each other - the fact that they were making an effort for her sake did make her feel warm and fuzzy - but they didn't argue or anything of the sort. Most of the time was spent with them and Tom pretending everything was all right and that they weren't outright ignoring each other. Caroline did interrogate her when they went to the bathroom. She was worried that Olivia was spending too much time with Alex because of her relationship with Tom - Olivia tried her best to put her mind at ease but she wasn't completely sure that it worked. It was also when she learned that she had been the one that had set them up in the first place... which was slightly surprising. She did wonder what had the other Olivia done.

The rest of the day when without hitch. While Caroline went to her meeting with the cheer squad, she went home with Tom and Alex to drop off their things and warn Cass that they were going out. Alex hadn't accepted the invitation of going to the Grill with them – he claimed that lunch had been more than enough and that he just needed to be left alone for a bit. Cass allowed them to leave, reminding them that they had to be at home by 10 at the latest. Olivia briefly wondered how would the Jacksons react to the news of the vampires strolling around town – well, Damon hadn't made an appearance so it was more one vampire running about – since they weren't what she'd call traditional witches. Would they lose their plots and try to murder them? Or would they be okay with that knowledge? One way or the other, she was sure that she would find out the answer to that question one day. She just didn't know if she was going to rue that day when it actually came.

Caroline was already inside of the Grill when they got there. She waved her hand enthusiastically and Olivia had to control her laugh when Tom started grinning - Tom was clearly taken with the blonde, whenever he saw Caroline his face would light up as if he was a child during Christmas morning.

"There you are," Caroline mumbles after pecking Tom's lips. "Elena's coming!" She shares excitedly. _So is Stefan._

"That's great," Olivia states smiling to her bubbly friend.

She nods her head with a semi-serious expression. "Maybe she really is better."

"She's getting there," Bonnie says. "These things take time."

Caroline sighs. "I know, still she's so different. Don't you agree Libbie?"

She was put on the spot. While she had a grasp of the character... She really had no clue how Elena acted before apart from apparently being bubblier. "Elena will be fine," she settles with. While Bonnie was giving her an approving smile, Caroline was frowning.

"I'm gonna order," Tom says breaking the awkward silence. "Any of you want something?"

"I'm fine," Caroline replies flashing him a smile. Bonnie nods in agreement, raising her cup a bit.

"Uh, chips and burger."

Everyone was looking oddly to her. "Coming right up," Tom says before leaving – acting as if nothing strange had happened.

Bonnie furrows her eyebrows. "Chips?"

"Yeah?"

"She's on one of her British moods," Caroline states rolling her eyes. "I think she has been binge watching Doctor Who again." Bonnie laughs and nods as if it made sense. Olivia didn't really know what to say but thankfully she didn't have to speak. "Woah," Caroline half yells half whispers. "Elena's with Stefan and they were intercepted by Matt." She cringes. "Won't end well."

"Matt won't do anything to jeopardize his relation with Elena," Bonnie quips with her eyes trailed on them.

"Or lack there off," Caroline adds. When Elena approaches the table Caroline smiles. "I'm happy you came and you brought Stefan!"

"We had a run in," Elena says almost shyly as she takes a seat next to Bonnie.

Stefan picks up a chair from another table and places it next to her, flashing a smile to the other occupants. "I hope you don't mind."

"Of course we don't." Caroline speaks for the rest of the table.

Tom nods in acknowledgement of Stefan before sitting next to Caroline. He hands her one of the two glasses he had been carryings. "Here."

"Thanks." She immediately started sipping on the soda so she could have a justification why she wasn't speaking. Truth was that she didn't know exactly how to act around everyone.

"So, share with us Stefan." Caroline leans into Tom a bit. "How's Mystic Falls treating you?"

He looks to Elena and smiles. "Great actually."

Caroline had a smile and it seemed like she was ready to interrogate Stefan. "So, you were born in Mystic Falls, right?"

Stefan nods. "And moved when I was still young."

"Parents," Bonnie asks next.

"My parents passed away."

Everyone at the table started exchanging looks. Bonnie and Caroline looked at Elena, who was starting at Stefan and Tom was looking to Olivia. Caroline eventually looked at them and smiled sadly. She wondered on that instance what the story of the Jackson's mother death and their father disappearance. "I'm sorry," Elena mumbles.

"It's fine, it was a long time ago," he reassures her.

"But it's never easy," Elena continues. They were seemingly lost in their own little world again. Then, as if Elena had remembered that there were other people with them, she asked the next question. "Any siblings?"

"None that I talk to." _But you will soon_. "I live with my uncle," he adds.

It seemed like loving gaze that Elena and Stefan were sharing wasn't just unsettling to Caroline. - Olivia didn't know what was exactly bothering her blonde friend or her brother. She clearly loved Tom. "The food is taking long, isn't it?"

"I'm absolutely famished," Olivia shares with Tom. "I could murder that burger."

Stefan was looking to her with a curious expression. "Uh, she's been binge watching Doctor Who," Caroline explains. It was a bit more than binge watching British shows, however, that explanation did make things easier whenever she slipped up.

"We all know how much of a whovian I am," she jokes. Apparently even more than she was aware.

"So, Stefan, since you're new, then you don't know about the party tomorrow," Caroline trails off sharing a look with Olivia that made her frown. That look couldn't mean anything good.

"It's a back to school thing at the falls," Bonnie continues.

Like on the show, Stefan looked to Elena, tuning out everyone else. Seeing it made her want to cringe, oh it was so awkward. He could have acted less… she didn't even know how to categorize the way he was acting, but he could have at least, for etiquette sake, shared a glance with the others. "Are you going?"

Bonnie grins. "Of course she is."

"We're all going," Caroline adds looking partially annoyed. Olivia looks to her with a raised eyebrow. "It's tradition," she says a bit riled up.

"Of course we are," Tom says soothingly. Caroline's bad mood lifted and she grins.

"We'll see each other there." Even if what Stefan was saying could be applied to everyone, he was looking to Elena as he spoke.

"Yes," Elena confirms a little breathlessly.

With a smile on her lips, Bonnie turns her attention to Olivia. "You're usually more excited about these things." _She was?_ She was starting to think that it would be close to impossible to maintain appearances. "You feeling alright?"

"I'm just tired," she tries to justify. "Today was long."

Caroline nods her head energetically. "Tell me about it."

Eventually her food got there and as she ate, the rest - apart from Stefan that only spoke when someone asked him something - spoke animatedly about their plans for the party. She couldn't really say that she was paying much attention to the conversation, worrying instead about the party taking place on the falls. The party would mark the return of Damon to the city (even if tonight he and Stefan would have a chat) and he was going to attack Vicki. While she did not feel very strongly about the girl – she had always found her a bit sketchy – that didn't mean that she deserved to have her neck chomped on… Also it would later result in her turning in a vampire and subsequent death. If possible, she rather the girl didn't die mainly for Matt's sake, he always looked so lonely that she couldn't help but to feel sorry. But what could she actually do? Try to prevent the girl from attending the party wouldn't really work nor would shadow her – if anything, both of them could end up being Damon's meal for the night. Vervain in her blood could theoretically prevent him from munching on her but then again it would also prevent Stefan's compulsion. Sure, he could very well kidnap her and then compel her once the herb was out of her system but... she just didn't know how Damon would react to that. It could very well make the girl die faster than in the show.

"Libbie!" Caroline was leaning towards her as she shook her arm. Everyone in the table was looking to her with expressions that varied from worry (Tom and Caroline) to confusion.

A bashful smile appears on her lips. "Sorry?"

"Are you alright?" She give Caroline a hesitant nod, glancing to Tom's direction. The blonde friend frowns. "Really? You were-"

"You look like you were half falling asleep," Tom tells her, interrupting Care.

"No, no. It's just a headache," she informs them. It was partially true, thinking about what she should do did really give her a headache.

"You've been having way too many headaches," Caroline comments.

Tom nods in agreement. "Do you want to go home?"

"Yeah," she mumbles apologetically. "Sorry," she says glancing to the rest.

Bonnie and Elena shake their heads, offering her a small smile. "We're going to see each other tomorrow," Bonnie reminds her. "You should rest."

"Yeah." She gets up from the chair. "I'm going to pay."

Tom warps his hand around her wrist. "I already did." He looks to Caroline. "You wanna come with us?"

"Yes." She looks to the others and smiles. "See ya tomorrow."

After the partially awkward exchange of goodbyes and get better wishes, they leave the Grill. Olivia's gaze briefly follows Vicki, she was flirting with Tyler looking like she didn't have a care in the world. What should she do? Should she even mess with the plot? Would it even work? She half wanted to do something but at the same time she didn't… her messing it up could have unforeseeable results… like dying. Sure, Damon hadn't outright killed her but who knew what he'd do to her or to whoever messed with the encounter he had with Vicky? It wasn't like there was a clear path for her to follow and she was sort of afraid. She felt a bit disappointed with that revelation, she knew that most of the fans would kill to be on her skin and there she was, with the opportunity of re-writing history and scared out of her mind of doing so. She takes a deep breath as she tries to calm down. Maybe she wouldn't have to worry about that… because maybe tomorrow she was going to be the day that she would return to her small flat, on her crappy bed and this was going to be nothing but a weird ass dream.

"Are you really okay Libbie, you're acting so strange," Caroline tells her effectively breaking her gaze.

"Just a headache."

Caroline frowns. "Bullshit. You're acting like Elena..." She widens her eyes and cringes. God, she did not wanted to be daydreaming all the time. "Okay, okay... not that bad. But you're always getting lost in thought. Did something happen?"

She looks to Tom. Didn't seem like he would intervene. "Uh, Caroline." Her tone of voice was gentle and even if she didn't know exactly what she could say to Care so she didn't worry without spilling the family secret, she would try. "It was just a long day and my head is really killing me."

"And that get together was awkward, wasn't it?" She smiles since it seemed that Caroline was seemingly believing her. That did make her feel a bit bad... She was lying, god, she was lying to Caroline Forbes!

"Yeah. The new kid seemed to be into Elena." Tom was furrowing his eyebrows. "It was sorta awkward, especially since Matt was there."

"Of course he is, everyone is always into Elena," Caroline comments snottily.

"Care." Her voice had been little above a whisper and a frown was in her lips. She hadn't expected their rivalry to be, well, existent. Caroline clearly had a boyfriend that loved her.

"I'm not," Tom declares fiercely grabbing her hand. "Ollie isn't too. You are wonderful and we love you."

A small smile appears on her lips, Caroline seemed embarrassed. "I'm sorry. I just." She sighs.

"Old issues," Olivia states as she grabs Care's free hand. "And Tom's right. You are wonderful, the best friend anyone could ever ask for. You got your issues but everyone has issues."

"Best girlfriend too," Tom adds with a grin.

Carline giggles. "You are the best. Thank you."

Olivia shrugs dismissing her words as she lets go of her hand. One of her priorities for tomorrow would be making sure Damon didn't cross paths with her. She now just had to think what she'd to about Vicki. "I'm going so you two can snog to your hearts contempt." She pulls out her phone to check the time. "You have forty minutes."

Caroline slaps her arm half-heartedly. "You're silly."

"I can drop you home," Tom offers. It seemed like he was divided. It was clear that he wanted to spend more time with Caroline but at the same time he didn't want to leave her alone.

She shake her head. "Enjoy your time love birds." She plants a kiss on Caroline's cheek. "I'll see you tomorrow."

She wasn't surprised to find Cass and Daphne up, reading in the kitchen as if they had been waiting for the twins. Both seemed to relax considerably when they saw her and they promptly asked her about her day at school. She did really admire the older women, they had raised almost everyone alone despite their young ages and she was sure that it hadn't been easy - it couldn't have been easy. Alex was also still up. When he heard the noise in the kitchen, he came to check it out, smiling briefly when he saw her.

"Well, good night," she says as she looks to Alex. Maybe... she could speak with him. Without telling him everything but she really needed some help, she was clearly out of her league. After planting a kiss on the other sibling's cheeks, she walks to him. "Can we talk pesk?"

He seemed confused but nodded immediately. "Something happened?"

"No. Uh, I was thinking."

He snorts. "Good, thinking is good," he mocks her.

"Liam!" She narrows her eyes. "It's, uh, sort of serious."

His whole demeanour changes. "What happened?"

"Nothing." She walks to her room and signals him tom follow her. Once he was inside she closed the door. "What would you do if you knew that someone would get hurt and you wanted to prevent it... but didn't know how?"

He was looking to her face with a serious expression. "Who told you?"

It wasn't what she had expected him to say. "What?"

His eyes were narrowed and it seemed like his temper was flaring. "Was it Tom? We agreed that you'd be left out of it. The council is on it and Jimmy is controlling the hospital. Don't worry."

She was beyond confused. "What are you talking about?"

He was looking to her, seemingly trying to decode what was on her mind. "The vampire that's on town." Her body automatically tenses. They knew about Stefan? But how? Had someone touched him and gotten a witchy vision? "The one that's behind the 'animal attacks'?" He elaborates. Oh, right! Damon's presence had been announced with a couple of bodies! She wanted to slap her forehead, how could have she forgotten that. "It wasn't that?" She was at a loss now. Should she say that it was related? "Fred?"

She sighs. "I... uh... Someone is going to get hurt but preventing it can and will most likely cause even more issues," she mumbles as she walks to the bed to sit. Oh, the bodies were going to make everything worse! She had planned to tell him she was writing a story (or some equally mundane thing) but now she was almost sure he wouldn't believe her. "I don't know what to do."

"Don't go look for trouble," he tells her sternly. "Your safety comes first."

She sighs. "I'm not," she declares confidently. "I, uh, just wanted advice."

His expression made her laugh. It was like he was frowning and smiling at the same time. "And you came to me." She nods making him sigh. "Okay, you want to tell me exactly what's this all about?"

She couldn't. Okay, she could but she didn't know how he'd react. "I just know that someone is going to get hurt."

"Somehow this seems more than knowing that we might have a vampire running around and people will get hurt if he isn't caught," he mumbles with a worried expression. "Are you... seeing things?" She tenses again. Alex seemed alarmed. "That's not good," he says in a harsh and low tone. "Fuck-"

"I didn't say that I was," she mutters.

Alex raises his hand. "Don't lie." She wasn't. She was not seeing things, she had seen things. It was completely different. "Oh, Fred... that's not good."

"Why?"

He frowns. "It's never good when you see things that can come to pass... What spell did you do Fred?"

She fought the urge to scream. She hadn't done any spells... She was ocupying a body and in her reality this whole thing was a show! "I haven't and I'm not seeing things!"

He sighs again. he was fidgeting. "Who knows?" He was seemingly dismissing her words. "You told Tom?" She shakes her head. "Okay, we're not going to tell Cass. 'Cause this can't be good. People don't wake up one day and start seeing bits of the future."

"We're witches though," she mumbles with uncertainty.

"We are but none of us ever used divination," he tells her calmly. "Sure, we all can do the occasional locator spell but we never had visions." He looks to her with a huge frown. "And why all of the sudden? You... how are you seeing stuff if half the time you don't have magic in you? How are you triggering the visions?"

She frowns. "I'm not."

"We're going to have to do research," he comments mind absently. "Maybe there's something in the grimoires."

"Okay." She didn't know if allowing him to think that wouldn't bring more issues in the future, but at the very least gave her an excuse to know things. "How about... uh... my previous question."

"What's going to happen?" She hesitates making him raise an eyebrow. "How do you want me to help if you don't tell me?"

"Meddling can make everything worse... we can get hurt or worse," she whispers to him, looking to her feet. "But not meddling will lead to someone dying. To several someone's."

He sighs. He grabs her hand and squeezes, prompting her to look to him. "Tell me, you can trust me... I mean, you trust me or else you wouldn't be telling me all this shit." he had a small grin on his lips that she soon mimics. Yeah, for some weird reason she did trust him but she just didn't know if she trusted him with the whole information. "So, spill."

"There are rules," she tells him seriously. he raises an eyebrow confused with the change in her demeanour but nods. "First you aren't a free agent, if I say no it goes."

He rolls his eyes. "Fine."

"No, that's important." And it was, she didn't want him dying on her because she had a big mouth. "Promise me Liam."

He extends his pinkie making her giggle. "I solemnly promise." Even if his tone was slightly mocking, she knew he was serious enough. "Cross my heart and hope to die."

"Okay." She takes a deep breath of air trying to calm down her nerves. "At the party tomorrow someone is going to get hurt." She didn't know if she should tell him that it was Vicki. "No one will die, but that person will get hurt." He nods encouragingly. "I thought that we could, I don't know, slip vervain... but, that will cause complications."

"We can prevent whoever from going to the party," he counters.

She nods. "But that means someone else is going to get hurt or even the same person. I'm not sure if we can completely prevent the future," she admits honestly.

He's silent for a bit. "What are the complications with vervain?"

She sighs. "She's going to get compelled into forgetting," she says automatically regretting. Alex was looking to her with a serious expression, scarily serious.

"You know who it is." It wasn't a question, she had said more than she had intended. She nods hesitantly. "Tell me."

She looks to her feet. "Vicki Donovan," she whispers. "She's going to have an argument with Tyler and well... you can imagine the rest."

"Okay, why do you want the compulsion to work?" He was clearly humouring her. There was no reprobation in his eyes - she was sure that not many would extend her that courtesy, she was positively sure that most would find her a horrible creature for being seemingly okay with the girl getting hurt and the vampire (who were actually vampires) using compulsion on her.

She decided to, well, if he was capable of debating this with her, maybe she could give him a bit of information... but nothing that would put him in more danger than he already was. "This will change," she states mysteriously. "This is the start and I'm not telling you that it's okay." She makes a pause looking to him straight in the eyes. "It's not, but it will happen regardless of what I want... Eventually, it will get better. The vampire will have... uh, will change their priorities and there won't be innocent people dying by their hands."

He looked frightened. She didn't know if it was on her behalf, on everyone's behalf or of vampires simply scared the shit out of him. "How do you know? Fred... What did you see?"

"Enough," she mumbled averting her gaze. "I can't tell you everything since I don't even know everything." It was a bit of a lie - it wasn't a total lie since she really didn't know how her influence would change the plot - but she couldn't tell him more at this point. "Just, trust me."

"I do." When she looks to him it was clear on his face that he really did. "I... Look, divination doesn't work like that. At least I don't think it does, Cass never told us something like that. We don't really have, uh, an affinity with it." He makes a pause, groaning. "This shit would be better if you had your memories... but let's just say that it isn't a tool in our skillset. We're better with Illusions and things of the sort... Premonitions? Not so much." He makes another pause, fiddling with his fingers. "I don't even know if we have a seer in out lineage. And even if we did... You have no magic of your own. I'm worried Fred. This can't be something good."

She squeezes his hand. "I'm alright."

He didn't seem convinced. "But she's going to eventually die, isn't she?" She nods reluctantly. "And you're sure that you want to help out the vampire? You know that shit is insane, don't you?"

She didn't want to help him... per say. She just didn't want to mess out the plot to a point new people (that she had no clue of knowing about) would be in danger or that it would result in their (the Jackson's, and the other protagonists) deaths. "I'm not... not really. I-I just don't really know what to do. I don't want people to get hurt but intervening can easily make everything worse. I also have to keep an eye on Caroline," she vents. "And on Tom so they don't stumble into any shit..."

He jolts from the bed. "They're in danger too?"

"I don't know." Care was safe for the most part, she stumbled into Damon after the party. "We gotta give Care some vervain." That was imperative, she had to prevent Damon from using her and since she was the Sheriff's daughter... maybe he wouldn't find anything strange with it and wouldn't chase her more for it.

He had a frown. "Okay, I'm sure that Cass can get us vervain. Just how are we going to explain this shit to her?" he looked like he was having the worst time of his life.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have dumped all this shit on you."

He had a frightened expression. "Don't. Look, we can deal with it and its better that you do this with me than alone. Someone gotta keep an eye on you." There was a hesitant smile on his lips. "I... I gotta ask, why me? Why did you tell me and not Tom?"

"I trust you," she mumbles looking to the ground. "I know that you won't judge me," she trails off. "And since Care is involved, Tom's going to lose his plot."

"That's an understatement." he sighs. "Okay, I worry about the vervain."

She perks up. Maybe, maybe confiding in Alex hadn't been all that bad. "How?"

"I'm going to Jimmy," he tells her taking a seat next to her. "He and Zach are palls and I'm just going to lie." She laughs at his serious expression. "I'm going to make up some bullshit that I'm worried about you." She raises an eyebrow making him snort. "That's not the bullshit, the bullshit is that we should slip vervain in your food... I'm sure that everyone will get on board since we don't really know if vampires can do something to your mind... And I'll say I want some. Then we go to Tom-" She immediately opens her mouth to protest making him sigh. "Look, he'll be on board of giving something with vervain to her. You tell him you're worried about Caroline and problem solved, right?"

It was actually a decent plan. "Yeah. That's actually bloody brilliant. I'm sure he'll keep an eye on her and we'll be keeping an eye on them... "

"Now about Vicki." He runs his hand over his face. "You're sure that we can't prevent it?"

She frowns. "I'm just not seeing how. We either put ourselves in danger and it happens all the same or we prevent it and someone else gets hurt or killed..." She pinches the bridge of her nose. "Maybe we could prevent Tyler and her from disappearing?" But then there was a chance that Jeremy would get hurt. She had the distinct impression that he had been following Vicki but she wasn't completely sure. "I don't know."

"We could spend time with them at the party," Alex suggests. "We ain't friends but... We're on friendly terms. Maybe Tom will join in and, yeah..." He makes a pause and looks to her. "Do you know who the vampire is?" When she doesn't reply he groans. "Wouldn't it be easy if you told me?"

"Maybe or maybe it would get you killed," she says seriously. "I don't want to speak about that."

"Fred!"

She narrows her eyes. "I'm serious. It's not safe."

"I know how to take care of myself," he insists. "How can I help you if you don't tell me?"

"I can't." Her voice slightly breaks. There were so many things that could go wrong by telling him. She'd have to tell him about Stefan and if he reacted to Damon... he would most likely kill him. "I swear that... There's too many things that can go wrong."

He seemed like he didn't agree but that was worried with her apparent distress. "I'm not gonna press... now. We'll get back to this later." He gets up from the bed. "Try to rest and we'll speak in the morning."

"Thanks Liam," she tells his genuinely. "Thank you so much. I didn't know how I was going to deal with this alone."

"I'm here." Even if his tone hadn't been so solemn, she would have believed his words. "You can tell me anything and I promise I'll try to help... Even when I don't agree."

"I know." He nods and plants a kiss on her forehead before leaving the bedroom with a much calmer expression that she had predicted.

Olivia knew that she wouldn't have a restful sleep but she hadn't predicted that the cause of the distress would be Olivia Jackson and not the shit that was happening. She dreamt of her again. She was with Tom on a beach she didn't recognize with two adults she had never seen before. The woman was smiling, sitting on a towel as she waved the off. The male was helping them bury a toddler (she thought that it was Alex) on the sand. They were all laughs and giggles but then something happened, the scenery changed. She wasn't in the beach any more. She was inside of the house crying loudly, there was other guy and he was yelling and she was being dragged away. There were no Tom or Alex, the woman wasn't also there. Instead there was another man, a man that wasn't the one that she had seen at the beach. She must have done something because he abruptly lets go of her and snarls – as if he wasn't completely human – before being tackled. When she fell, she saw blood. There was blood on the floor and on her hands which made her screech.

She felt ridiculous for going to Alex room in the dead of the night because she had a nightmare – or was it a memory? She could no longer tell. Not only was he way younger than her but she had never been the type to seek comfort in other people, maybe because she had been an only child. Also, she was dumping too much shit on him, wasn't she? First the problem of Vicki and now her nightmares? She doesn't knock, instead she lets herself in and gently shakes him before getting inside of the bed.

"What's wrong?" His voice was groggy and he was giving her a worried look. "Did you see something else?"

"No. I had a nightmare. Can I sleep here?" It was honestly embarrassing, he was 15 and she was 23 – or 16, depending on the point of view. She was partially hiding her face, she didn't want to see what look he was giving her.

He nods as he makes more room for her. "Wanna talk 'bout it?"

Even if it was clear that he was absolutely knackered, he was willing to speak with her. "Uh, I don't even know what it was about. There were yells and snarls and blood," she says lamely.

He sighs. "You're safe. You sure it wasn't a vision?"

"I am." Well, sort of. She had the distinct impression that she was seeing their past. "I know I'm safe." At least on that moment… It wasn't like any of the vampires running around had been invited inside, so she was. She was safe right now.

"I won't let the boogie man get ya," he mumbles teasingly. "Just rest, okay?"

"Thanks pesk."

He ruffles her hair. "Don't mention it maggot."

* * *

After the classes she was completely and utterly fidgety. Everyone, including Alex, was giving her worried looks and commenting on her nervous demeanour making her barely deflect their attention. Alex had spoken with James during their lunch break and shared with her that all seemed to be on track and that he'd have the vervain by tomorrow at the latest making her relax a bit. They had decided to not loose Vicki and Tyler from their sight - as well as their brother and Care - and that they would wing it- At Alex's mention of winging it, she laughed hysterically making the younger male snort and ask her if she had a better plan which she really didn't.

While he and Tom were at practice, she read the grimoire on her bedroom - she had promised Alex to do so, even if she was sure that she wouldn't find any answers there - trying not to lose her plot before the party. So many things could go wrong, she hoped that by improvising things would get even worse. She also hoped that confiding in Alex wouldn't get him killed. However, only time would tell.

"Hey!" Caroline hugs her when she and Alex get to the party.

Alex promptly rolls his eyes before glancing around. "I'm going to get us a drink," he tells her, flashing her a smile before walking away.

"Urgh, why did you bring him?" Caroline wasn't the only one giving her curious looks. Tom also seemed to be curious on the matter - he had invited her to go with him and Caroline and she said no because she and Alex needed to go over their plan, which wouldn't happen if he was around. "Just wanted to give you a bit of time to be together." What she didn't say was that it was mainly because they wouldn't exactly be alone till the party ended.

"You sure you're okay?"

She smiles before nodding. "Where's everyone, anyway?"

"Bonnie and Elena went for drinks and the rest of the squad is around... somewhere." At her words she glances around as if she was trying to spot someone.

Tom furrows his eyebrows, looking to something over her shoulder. When Olivia follows his gaze, she finds Alex walking to her - sipping on a beer and holding a... cup with what she hoped that was a fizzy drink- with Tyler and Vicki on tow. He flashes her a grin and winks his eye. "Here." He hands her the drink once he was close.

"Thanks."

Caroline, after greeting Tyler, looking partially surprised - Olivia wondered what Alex had told him to get him there - moved her attention to Olivia. "Not as many people as last year," she tells her.

Olivia honestly didn't know so she nods as she takes a sip of her drink feeling thankful that it wasn't in fact an alcoholic beverage - being drunk or partially drunk would really fuck up things more. "It's still early," Tyler points out.

"I'm sure that the party will last," Alex adds sharing a look with Olivia.

Vicki nods her head - it looked like she was feeling slightly out of place. "Let's hope that it's better than last year."

Olivia seriously hoped that Vicki was right, so she extended her cup to the girl. "Here's to that."

Vicki gaps before nodding with a small smile on her lips, hitting Olivia's cup with her bottle of beer. "Yeah."

Caroline glances at the pair. "Uh, I need a new drink." She smiles to Olivia. "Join me." Olivia looks to Alex, trying to subtly access if he could deal with the other tree people alone. She hoped that the fact he hadn't said something to prevent them from walking away meant that he did. "What's up with that? Why are we hanging with Vicki and Tyler? Did Alex lose it?"

"Is there something wrong with it?"

Care shakes her head hesitantly. "No but since when do we hang with her?"

"It's just a party," Olivia says with a small smile on her face. "We're not braiding each other's hairs and having sleep overs."

Caroline snorts before flashing her a smile. "Sure, but it's going to be awkward when Elena joins us. You know those two never got along." It seemed like she wanted to say something else, but they bumped into Stefan. "Hey! You made it." She seemed a little less enthusiastic than on the show, but there was still a smile on her face.

"I did." He smiles to both girls.

"We're getting drinks, join us." Stefan looked like he wanted to protest, but soon Caroline was pulling him with them.

"Care," Olivia mumbles, fighting off the urge to laugh. The vampire seemed so reluctant but was following them nonetheless. "I'm sure he has other places to be."

Caroline rolls her eyes, letting go of Stefan. "We're getting Elena too. Plus he doesn't even know the place... he could get lost," she reasons.

"Thank you," Stefan quips. "But you don't have to worry... I'm sure I could find the way."

Caroline stops briefly and glances to his face. She didn't look very pleased, Olivia just knew that she was about to give Stefan a piece of her mind. Sure, he was being slightly rude - not that Caroline's pushiness was polite either - but there wasn't any real reason to blow off her kindness. "If we're forcing you to something just tell us," Olivia says gently making Caroline widen her eyes. "No hurt feelings or anything."

He opens and closes his mouth a couple of times. "No... I meant-"

"Libbie's right," Caroline tells him with a slightly serious tone. "I tend to be..."

"In your own head," Olivia offers making the blonde smile in appreciation.

"Yeah so, tell us. Plus, we just want to get to know you," she adds before handing him a beer.

He sighs. "I didn't mean to be rude."

"Well, you were." Olivia raises an eyebrow making Caroline raise her hands. "All's forgive though. Now, would you like to join us or... go on your own?"

"I can go with you," he says sounding like it wasn't a completely appalling idea.

Caroline flashes him a smile. "Good. Did you see Elena and Bonnie on your way to us?"

Olivia shakes her head. "I'm sure they must be around here somewhere." She subtly looks to Stefan curious of what he would do, he could hear them speaking.

"Let's try to find them." He was subtly walking ahead of them, glancing around - which made Olivia wonder if it was to keep up appearances or if he was trying to pin point her location.

Bonnie stumbles on them, looking partially surprised. "Bonnie," Olivia greets pleasantly.

"You look spooked," Caroline declares devoting all of her attention to Bonnie.

Meanwhile, Stefan rather discreetly continues walking away - not that discreetly since Olivia noticed, however, she was being attentive of his behaviour. "I'm fine," Bonnie promises. "Just need a refill."

Caroline furrows her eyebrows. "Where did he just go?"

"Elena, I'm sure," Olivia states. "Let's get you that drink Bonnie and you can join us."

Bonnie smiles appreciatively before following the girls back to where the rest of them were. She spent the better part of the party with the group they assembled - being briefly joined by Matt at some point. Tyler tried twice to subtly disappear with Vicki but given that Matt was there and every time he tried it Alex would subtly speak with him as if he had no clue what Tyler was trying to do, he managed not to get far. In fact, Olivia found herself having fun. Caroline was a wonderful distraction and seeing her and Tom interact was cute. Alex and Tyler also seemed friends - she even teased the younger Jackson into admitting it - and Vicki wasn't completely ignored like Olivia had feared by Caroline's reaction. Jeremy was also safe, seeing that he was lurking around them so overall, the plan of improvising wasn't bad.

During the middle of the party, as the teenagers became more intoxicated, Tyler and Vicki weren't the only ones trying to sneak out. Caroline and Tom also tried it but were dissuaded when Olivia started chatting with them. They were actually one of the first ones to abandon the party - wanting some alone time - being followed by a sullen Matt and Vicki who was drunk out of her wits. Tyler went with them and soon Bonnie and Elena, who they only saw when at the end of the party, accompanied by Jeremy also left. Olivia couldn't believe it but their plan had worked! No one was munched on in Vicki's absent and said girl was most likely now at the safety of her own house. Maybe she had worried herself over nothing.

"I think this was a success, wouldn't you say Fred?"

She grins, promptly hugging him in pure and complete happiness. "Yes, we need a drink brother!"

They stumble into Stefan in their way to drinks, who chuckles at their sight. "You guys look happy."

"We are," Alex says enthusiastically and Olivia nods her head in agreement.

She did wonder what was Damon doing and if he and Stefan had crossed paths already. However, Stefan seemed... happy so she thought that he had no clue his brother was prowling. Oh, poor guy. His world was going to shift when he got home - if the plot hadn't changed, that was. "You're free to join us."

"Why not."

Alex glances inquisitively at her before walking to the drinks. "So, how was your first party?"

"Great."

Alex hands them two beers, opening hers before handing it to her. "To the successful night," he cheers tilting his own bottle.

"May it all be as easy," Olivia quips mysteriously before clinking their bottles.

"And to Fred's weird ass toast." Alex flashes her a smirk before drinking from the bottle eagerly. Neither had consumed much alcohol during the night - this was her first drink and Alex's third.

Stefan furrows her eyebrows. "Fred?"

"Fred," Alex confirms without offering any explanation.

Olivia rolls her eyes. "Middle name."

"Another one?" She nods approvingly at Alex question, eagerly finishing her own drink.

Stefan was glancing at them, looking partially confused and amused. "Why are you celebrating the end of the party?"

"Some see an end, we see a start," Alex jokes with a smirk.

She raises her bottle. "Oh, that was good. To new beginnings." Alex clinks his bottle to her and both look to Stefan, who amusedly toasts with them.

"I'll let you continue." He smiles to both. "See you tomorrow."

"Bye Stefan."

"Bye," Alex says at the same time as her. "Okay, one more and we should go."

She nods. "Have I told you that you are bloody brilliant?"

"I'd like to hear it again," Alex tells her teasingly.

"You, Liam, are bloody brilliant," she declares with some flourish making him grin. "Couldn't have done it without you."

He nods. "I am amazing," he agrees.

She raises her glance. "To being partners in crime."

"I can get behind that," he says after a laugh since Olivia did look really excited.

Meanwhile in town, there was a girl leaving the Grill completely alone. She had delayed her return home to sober up with her boyfriend who decided to act stupid. So now, she had to walk alone across the town because he was a dick before the people that cared noticed her absence. She really didn't want to explain what had gone wrong and this really put a bump in her overall good mood. The party had been good, but as usual, the guy had to ruin it.

A good looking guy stops right in front of her and when she tries to walk around him, he steps to the side, preventing her escape. He seemed thoroughly amused but her annoyance and she wasn't in the mood to deal with it.

"I don't know what your problem is dude, but I'll scream if you try anything."

A smirk appears on his lips. "I'll be gone and done before you scream... You see, I'm... peckish." He then lunges for her neck before she had proceeded his words. She screams when she feels his teeth on her neck and after couple of seconds he lets her drop on the ground. "Much better." He flashes her a bloodied smile before rushing away as all the lights of the houses that were around, light themselves.


	3. 003

_._

 _I know what you think in the morning_

 _When the sun shines on the ground_

 _And shows what you have done_

 _It shows where your mind has gone_

 _And you swearing to your parents_

 _That it will never happen again_

 _I know, I know oh ow, what that means_

Guns for Hands – Twenty one Pilots

* * *

When she was violently shaken awake she knew it was too early and that could only mean that something was wrong. Alex's hands were slightly trembling and his expression was beyond distressful - it was as if he had witnessed a murder and she seriously hoped it wasn't the case. From looking at him she could gather that he had just returned from his morning run, not only because of the sporty clothes but also due his tousled hair and the sheen of transpiration on his forehead. His hands leave her shoulders once she opens her eyes and he walks away, glancing twice in her direction. While she rubbed the sleep away from her body - it had been one of the best nights of sleep she had in Mystic Fall, she hadn't been plagued with weird dreams nor had woken up with nightmares of what was about to happen - she saw him grab a candle, light it up and throw something into it. She furrows her eyebrows as he walks to the door apparently making sure it was closed. The fact he hadn't uttered a word yet was making her feel beyond nervous. Her heart was beating so frenetically that she could almost feel beneath her tongue. Hell, he had literally scared the sleep away from her.

"It failed. We failed... She was attacked but she's alive," he tells her urgently, returning to the bed. His voice was in a low tone and his eyes were almost unblinkingly locked in hers as he remains standing next to her. "We." His gaze was jumping around her face, watching her emotions unravel. Confusion, anger, worry and sadness. "We didn't prevent it."

She violently rubs her face. She didn't even know what to feel much less what she should say. "Bloody hell."

"Tom's fine and so is Caroline... Vicki was the only one-"

She jolts from the bed startling him in the process. A new concern taking place regarding what had exactly happened with Tom and Care. "Did they go home?" He seemed confused at her question and the urgency in her tone. By the look on his face she knew that he didn't know the answer to her question. "Uh, Caroline wasn't in danger in the party, it was after it... sorta." He looked like he wanted to ask her what the hell was she talking about, but she didn't stop long enough for him to ask. "Did they? Did they go to the Grill?"

"I... Uh, no clue," he mumbled scratching his neck. He had a frown on his face and even if she didn't think it was possible, he looked even more worried. "The Grill?"

She nods. While he was partially frozen to place, clenching and unclenching his fists, Olivia quickly pulls clothes she would dress, if anything they had to get a grasp of the situation quickly before things got out of hand. "I'll check. How are we in the vervain situation?"

He flashes her a look of relief seemingly letting his other questions to remain unspoken for the moment. "That actually went fine. Got a bracelet for you and some spare vervain."

"I don't need it," she tells him before signaling him to turn around. Once he had his back to her, she quickly discards her pajama and dresses herself. "Look, compulsion won't work on me... Even if I got no magic, I'm a witch."

"We don't know that," he mutters clenching his fists. "You can be completely vulnerable-"

"Promise I'm not," She interrupts. It didn't make sense, they had prevented her from wandering in the woods. Why had Damon crossed paths with her? Or, maybe even more importantly, where? Did this mean that even if she prevented things from happening in the place that she saw in the show it could still happen? If so, was Caroline still in danger? But it made no sense what so ever.

"We don't know," he stresses as his temper flares pulling her from her trance. "We don't know much about what you are."

She sighs, dismissing his concern. They had bigger things to worry about. "Where was she attacked?"

"No one is sure." He seemingly drops the other issue for the moment. "Jimmy told me that Matt found her outside the Grill."

She briefly collects all the clothes she had discarded before tapping him in the shoulder. Damon wouldn't have moved her so that meant that she was most likely attacked outside the Grill. Maybe that meant he found her instead of Caroline? But what did that even mean? Oh, what changes had she caused to the plot? Not that the plot didn't had issues that had little to nothing to do with her... like the Jackson's presence and even Tom's and Caroline's relation. "Okay. We cocked it up," she mumbles closing her eyes briefly. Oh, what were they supposed to do now?

"What?"

She furrows her eyebrows, not understanding his point. "It went all to pot. We just need to think what we're going to do with her. We also need to discover if Tom and Care went to the Grill, that's the easy part... Yeah, I'll deal with that."

"With the necklace will she be safe?"

If this wasn't such a serious matter she would have laughed. It was the first time in almost four months that she had seen him worrying about Caroline. "Theoretically, yes. Her danger is completely different from Vicki's," she explains. Alex was merely furrowing his eyebrows. "She could become his puppet."

"With vervain she isn't," he finishes with some uncertainty since Olivia herself didn't seem too sure.

"But he can always snap her neck. How can I know what's going to happen if the guy is a nutter at this point," she admits.

Alex lips become a tense line, his hands were clenched into fists and it seemed that his temper was flaring again. The kid had clear anger issues but what surprised her has how well - to her knowledge - he controlled it. "Why don't you tell me who he is and we pass the message along and the council deals with him? The guy deserves a-"

"Liam, he's a nutter right now," she tells him almost gently, trying to calm him down. "Worse things will come... He'll get better, he'll eventually protect the town. Please trust me," she pleads grabbing his hand so she could squeeze it. "Trust me."

"Fuck, I don't know how that shit works," he confesses closing his eyes briefly and taking deep, calming breaths of air. "How do you... How do you know?"

"I just do." She suddenly remembers that he had lit a candle. "What was the deal with that?"

He raises an eyebrow. "So no one hears us, I'm sure that it will get fucking worse if the others know what we did... what you know..." He makes a pause as she nods. "You sure we shouldn't speak with them? 'Cause it might be in bit over our heads..."

She shakes her head vigorously. The last thing she needed right now was to have the Jackson's like hounds on her. "No, not only will we put them in danger but I'm sure I wouldn't have free reign over my actions. Maybe later, maybe once I get a grasp of this thing." She makes a vague gesture in the air. "I won't be able to do anything if Cass is on me 24/7."

He acquiesces almost reluctantly. "Fine but if I see you in over your head..." He didn't finish but she got the message.

She nods finding that it was fair enough. She would do her best so things didn't reach that point. "Give me a warning before you tell them."

"Sure. What's our plan?"

She sits on the bed. "I need you to change while I have a chat with Tom... I'll inquire about their whereabouts." She makes a pause. "Maybe I can give him the vervain while I'm at it. Then we should stop by the hospital to check on Vicki, maybe one of us could have a chat with Matt." She looks to him, frowning. "Which one of us is friendlier with him?"

He scratches his neck. He was clearly uncomfortable with the question, way too many weird things were happening: her memory hadn't returned - weirder even was the fact that their older brothers had told him to not concern himself with it, even after that they had confirmed his worries that this was most likely permanent giving neither explanations nor any sign that they would do anything to change it- she was now seeing the future and for some reason she had a pointed herself and him to solve it. "Uh, Tom... I'm sure I can get the info all the same."

"Good, good." She suddenly groans loudly. The comet, Vicki was going to be manhandled by Damon today and if memory served her right it was also when Caroline bumped into Damon and became his puppet. How was she going to deal with that?!

"I'm also sure that Jimmy can get us in," Alex adds when he realizes that Olivia was lost in thought. He extends his hand to her, taking a deep breath of air. "Take some from me. Maybe you'll have a vision..."

She shakes her head. She wasn't going to have visions. "I'm okay. Tomorrow Jimmy's turn, I still have a bit," she reminds him but he merely thrusts his hand again. "Liam."

"Just do it, okay? I'll be fine as long as you don't take too much." His lips were a tense line, like he was preparing himself for the pain. "Look, we need all the help we can get. I'm gonna try to find some spell to make it easier for you to trigger the visions."

She had to fight of the urge of groaning. That would never happen! However, it wasn't like she could explain him the truth, was it? It had been a stupid decision of going with it but she was sure that the truth would be even harder to cope with. So, to keep up the pretense that she had visions, she knew that she wouldn't be able to dissuade him. "Can we focus on the issue at hand?" She tries again being almost sure that it wouldn't dissuade him.

"Go," he insists.

With a sigh she places her hand above his as the tell-tale sign that she was siphoning appears in the form of the faint red glow on her hand. Even when she tried her hardest to be gentle, it always hurt whoever she was taking magic from. He didn't whimper or made any sounds, however, his other hand was clenched at his side and his lips were a tense line. She wasn't sure why he acted in such manner - she was fully aware that it was painful. Whether it was so she didn't freak out - doing this with someone screaming their lungs out couldn't be pleasant if whoever did it cared for the person - or because he wanted to keep up the pretense that he was someone strong. Maybe it was for both their benefits, maybe in his ridiculously big shoes she'd do exactly the same - the success depending on just how painful the whole ordeal was.

Another of the thing that she hadn't expected when she first came to this universe (or even when she saw the show) was just how pleasant was the feel of having magic coursing on her body actually felt. It was as if suddenly she felt alive, in tune, as if the planets aligned themselves and she found herself belonging. It was like the feel of having sun shining on you, all around you... warming you to the bones. She never deemed it possible, but she could understand why Kai had wanted magic so much... Sure, she wouldn't go lunatic on them if they suddenly decided to cut back on their magic donations, but she was sure that it would cause her severe discomfort. It would be like losing a part of herself. Thankfully, at least in some regards, the Jackson's were caring and would never do something like that to her in fear that it harmed her - which she honestly didn't know if it did. She even started to wonder if the lack of magic in siphoners didn't somewhat affected their personalities. However, it wasn't like they were lurking around, at the moment, and that she could ask them. Or, returning to her previous point, how to make it less painful whenever she siphoned someone.

Cass, under the impression she had a case of magical amnesia, had explained her that whenever she siphoned she should focus and imagine pulling a liquid to her body. She would stress that the 'liquid' she took should never be too much or else she could hurt the siblings a lot - she didn't had to because Olivia was fully aware that she could kill a witch like that something that Olivia wondered if their siblings were aware of. At the question of what she could do to make it hurt less, Cass frowned and admitted that she had no clue. The only thing that over the years that she had found was that she should be fast doing it but not as fast as to leave them winded. They had (the previous Olivia and Cass) numerous conversations on the subject but had never reached a suitable answer. Sadly, she hadn't mastered it still and her appearance on this universe, or the memory loss that the Jacksons insisted that was the occurrence, had put a setback on things. Cass had been the one that she had tested it on till she found a pace that wasn't overly painful.

When she removes her hand from Alex, his breaths were still labored. She didn't know if it was because it had been particularly painful because her lack of knowledge or if it usually ended with him like that. The older siblings had more mastery in controlling their expressions so she didn't feel... out of place. But, because of how pained he looked she felt regret and shame. She should have fought him harder. "Sorry."

"You're getting better." She wasn't sure if he really meant it, but she smiled at the try nonetheless. He gets up from the bed. "You're ready?"

"Yeah, thanks." She mimics his movements and gets up. He blows the candle and they both leave the bedroom.

Like they had discussed, Alex goes straight to his bedroom while Olivia goes to Tom's. She knocks on the door and after a grunt of his she enters. He seemed confused, she didn't know if it was caused by her presence in his bedroom at early hours of the morning for unknown reasons - it was barely six in the morning - or if it was simply because she was there, it was clear to everyone that nowadays Olivia sought Alex more than her twin. He pulls his body up, yawning and stretching, before asking if something was wrong.

"Not at the moment," she says as truthfully as she could. "I didn't see you when you got home," she comments, hoping that she didn't look like she was fishing for information. "How was your night with Care?"

If he noticed that she seemed eager to learn what they had been up to, he didn't react physically nor commented. A grin appears on his lips. "It was good. How about yours? Where you okay at the party with Alex?"

She nods, feeling partially aggravated since he hadn't told her what they had been up to. Now she would have to press and she didn't know how to do that without acting weird - she had never manifested much interest in his and Care's plans. "Yeah, everyone left a bit after you," she trails off being sure to put a smile on her face. "We left after a couple of drinks. Cass was waiting for us," she adds being sure to show her displeasure at the older sibling actions. "I was surprised that she didn't have an alcoholic test on her to check us."

Tom laughed. "She always waits for us. She was still up when I got here too." He then furrows his eyebrows. "Why are you up anyway?"

She sighs. Oh, this conversation wasn't going how she wanted it to. "Vicki was attacked, Liam and I are going to drop at the hospital to see her."

Tom looks attentively to her face, groaning at the end. "He told you." It wasn't a question but she nodded nonetheless. "Cass' gonna kill him."

She narrows her eyes. "At least someone told me what was going on," she mutters. "And we got vervain for Care so she isn't in danger." He looked dumb folded. "You're welcome by the way." There was a scornful smile on her lips.

"I'm sorry Ollie... It's just." He takes a deep breath of air. "You're not yourself lately."

"I'm fully aware."

They were in an uncomfortable silence now. There were many emotions flashing in Tom's eyes: regret, sadness and a bit of anger. But neither knew how to deal with it. Things had changed and now everyone was trying to cope with it, especially the younger ones.

In the first weeks Tom had dismissed almost completely Olivia's odd behavior. She didn't do any of the things she previously did, there was no Olivia drawing nor lots of pranks to catch Alex of guard. She didn't try to leave the house to spend time with her best friend nor did she tease their relatively recent relationship with neither advices nor my commenting just how _lovey-dovey_ they acted. Saying she was a shell of her former self was a massive understatement. Instead he saw her depressed and withdrawn - especially, for some odd reason in the mornings, in the morning was when she was at her absolute worst and they'd often find her with (or in) tears. She barely interacted with the family, speaking mostly with him and Alex and it was clear that she didn't understand half of what was going on. And the way she acted with the older siblings didn't just change in the way that she didn't interact much with them. It was almost like things, somehow, had become the **opposite** inside of her. Whenever before she'd stay silent and accept their judgment she would now challenge them - especially in the first few weeks when they were trying to discover what had happened to her, when they asked her to leave so they could discuss it she'd refuse and blow up a storm - making her relationship with Cass strained at first, but when she'd argue before - when she wanted to go out of the house to spend time with her friends - she now didn't and would calmly accept it. He honestly didn't know what to think nor what to feel.

It had been during the second month after the change that Cass approached him. By then it was clear that no one knew what had happened and the hopes of finding out where minimal - even if the girl sometimes would still say that she wasn't **their** Olivia - and that the new family dynamics where there to stay, for the foreseeable future. Cass told him that it had been a spell that had damaged her mind and she was sure of it - something that he was aware that she'd later share with Alex - She also stressed that Olivia was their sister despite acting unlike herself that she had checked if it was someone else. **It wasn't**. Olivia was Olivia and the girl in question was paying for whatever she had done - Tom found curious that her sister had used the word 'paying' but even when he questioned she didn't offer insight - and that she wanted his help in keeping the younger siblings out of problems. Everyone by then was aware that Olivia had a clear preference by the youngest Jackson and given that they were the most disruptive siblings, someone had to keep tabs on them.

If things had been normal, Tom would have refused to play spy for Cass. He and Olivia had always been a unified front against everything... nowadays he wasn't sure if she was ever going to be his _Ollie_ again and he knew that it would be dangerous to just let her unchecked while Alex acted as her partner in crime. So he agreed, being fully aware that the before spell gone wrong Olivia wouldn't hold this against him and that there was a good chance that the after spell Olivia could very well try to bite his head off.

As time progressed the feel of sadness and impotency regarding the changes his sister exhibit changed. He started to feel petty and jealous of her relation with Alex. Almost as if Alex has stolen his twin, the other half of his being. He knew that it was stupid, silly and somewhat shallow - the girl had her life thrown upside down and he was worrying about his hurt feelings - but he couldn't exactly help it. He felt almost betrayed and like there was something wrong with him. He didn't understand what was Alex offering that he didn't... and that put a strain in their already strained relationship.

Alex and he always had a complex and somewhat difficult relation, to put it mildly. The older Jacksons had always looked to Tom, given that he was the mature one of the twins, to make sure than in his absence Olivia would be fine and Alex hadn't exactly enjoy his role of being left in the dark nor that his brother, who was almost his age, was treated as if he was older. He also wanted to help out in protecting their family, he didn't want to be treated like a child. Alex didn't understand that their siblings were trying to spare him so he could have a relatively normal childhood. So, he was always pushing his limits to better himself - having good grades and progressing in his magical studies - and when it became clear that he'd never be treated like Tom, he rebelled. He didn't know if it had been because he had found it to be the easiest way to aggravate everyone or if he was also rebelling because Olivia paid more attention to everyone but him - often saying that he had more cooties than everyone else - their prank war started and lasted till recently. Sure, they were fond of each other and nobody did anything harmful to Alex without suffering Olivia's (and Tom's) wrath - in his part, as age progressed so did their rivalry and sometimes it was hard to have a normal conversation with the teenager - but it was nothing compared to now. Now, it was almost as if Olivia was Alex's twin and while the younger sibling had calmed due his apparently new place as making sure that Olivia - who had always been the weakest link of the family because she didn't produced magic and also because that they saw that fact as if she had a magic illness that could be terminal - was well and protected it was like he had Tom's prudence. While Tom always tried to calm down her more disruptive tendencies, Alex seemed to revel in causing mayhem with her and knowing the pair... it couldn't end well.

Honestly, he just wanted things to go back as they were... however, everyone told him that it wouldn't happen overnight and that there was a strong possibility of it never happening. Cass and James told him that if it happened, it would be by Olivia's terms. That they had to give her space and that maybe her fried brain would be able to salvage something. Only time would tell now.

"How about we don't argue?" She suggests.

"I don't want to argue," he agrees flashing her an uncertain smile that she soon mimics. "You want me to go with you and Alex to the hospital?"

She shrugs. "Your call."

A knock on the door makes both look to the source of noise. They immediately see Alex's head appear, he glances at the pair before entering and closing the door behind himself. Tom promptly narrows his eyes, remembering that he had gone against Cass' wishes - despite the conversation they had. The older teenager wasn't pleased. "Something happened?"

"He knows you told me," Olivia shares almost dismissively, trying to prevent an argument. "Vervain?" Alex nods and hands it to her. "Want me to take care of this?" Her question was directed to Tom.

He shakes his head accepting the herb. "I'll do it. Thanks, saved me an awkward conversation with Cass."

Olivia rolled her eyes when Alex handed her the bracelet. "Told you I don't need it."

"Humor me," he says dryly. "Are you done here?" He was giving her a meaningful look that confused Tom. It further served to remind him that things weren't the same: before he was the only one that could communicate with her without words.

"Uh, yeah." She gets up from the bed without accepting the jewelry. "We'll see you later?"

Tom glances at the pair before nodding uncertainly. "Are you guys up to something?"

Alex immediately smirks. "We always are. Later."

Olivia smiles before following Alex. "See you at school!"

When she closed the door, Alex rose an eyebrow. "You know what you wanted to know?"

"No." Well, she was sure that Care would happily divulge the information and if not... well... she'd deal with it… somehow. "He didn't told me and I didn't want to press," she whispers as they walk downstairs. "He'd be suspicious."

"Girls have looser lips anyway," he comments encouragingly. Even if she appreciated the effort - it did cheer her up a bit - she smacks his stomach. "Not you," he defends, raising his hands in the air after a groan.

Suddenly, both feel an arm around their shoulders and a head in the middle of them. "What are we up to?" Both of them promptly jump, scared at the sudden appearance of their brother James. He laughs.

"Prat," she mutters narrowing her eyes.

Alex groans. "Not cool."

"You're not the only ones allowed to have fun," he defends himself with a small smile. He plants a kiss on Olivia's head, smiling when she merely sighs in resignation. "You're up early," he comments.

She looks to Alex, who just nods at her. "Uh, Liam told me about Vicki." James looks to Alex with his eyes narrowed. The older male seemed to be preparing a long speech and by the look of his face it was clear that he didn't approve. "Hey, don't give me that. I just wanted to check on her..."

She manages to shift his attention to her. He raises his eyebrow looking attentively to her. "Since when are you friends with Vicki Donovan?"

Thankfully Alex is the one that speaks because she honestly had no idea what would be an acceptable answer to his question. "We're worried and Fred wants to make sure that Donovan is okay."

She nods approvingly. "Friendship has nothing to do with this. It's called being a decent human," she states.

James raises his hands over his head in mocked defeat. He gives her an once-over before sighing. He either didn't found what he was searching for or what he saw satisfied whatever he was trying to find in her face/posture. "Fine. You guys can come with me but I can't drop you off at school."

Both of the teenagers nod in agreement. "Are you the one taking care of her?"

Jimmy sighs. "Yeah. She's fine, she lost a lot blood." Both Alex and Olivia give him a deadpan look that made him roll his eyes. "What I'm trying to say is that... whoever did it, didn't want her dead." Alex and Olivia share a look, James squints his eyes glancing at them. "What was just that?"

Alex puffs his chest. "Doesn't that worry you? Vampires usually kill people."

"We're safe," James promises, giving them an encouraging smile. He thought that the teenagers were scared - he wasn't that far off, but the reality was more complicated than that. "No one will let anyone harm you." He smiles, even if it was clear that his words where meant for both, his gaze was locked in Olivia's. "You should eat while I take a shower." He stops briefly to ruffle Olivia's hair and goes up the stairs. "Put the bracelet on or we'll have a chat with Cass missy." That was by far the best threat anyone could ever do to her.

A defeated groan leaves her lip as Alex thrusts the bracelet to her. There was a grin in his lips as he locks said item in her wrist before she changed her mind. "This doesn't change anything," she mutters. "He wouldn't be able to compel me."

"You don't know that," he hisses. "You barely know anything Fred so stop taking stupid risks."

She sighs and pitched the bridge of her nose. Arguing about it wouldn't help and she really did think that they had bigger worries at the moment. And well, it wasn't like people listened to her anyway... She hadn't been aware that Alex also belonged to the bunch but it was clear that he didn't believed when she promised she was safe from compulsion. To be honest, maybe she wouldn't believe herself in his shoes. Everyone knew that she had the minimum of knowledge and well, that didn't turn her in the most reliable source. What they didn't know was that what she lacked in common knowledge – she couldn't really cast simple spells and if they asked her things about spell casting or potions she usually didn't know what to answer – she made up in spades with information about the people (the cast of the show) and the future events.

They were at the table eating cereal in silence when Cass enters. She spares them a glance, walking to the coffee machine and promptly fixing herself a cup of coffee, before questioning them. Whereas Alex being awake at six in the morning wasn't nothing out of the ordinary, they had never seen Olivia up at these hours before.

"What's going on?"

"Good morning Cass," Alex says almost snidely.

She merely raises an eyebrow making both of the teenagers sigh. "We're having breakfast early before we go to the hospital with Jimmy."

"Why?"

Alex gives Olivia an exasperated look before turning to Cass. One of his hands was clenched and both of them knew that it wouldn't end well. Sadly, neither one had thought of a plan in case they bumped into Cass. "She knows," he states simply. "I told her and we're going to check on Donovan."

Several emotions go through Cass's face but the most prominent was anger. "Why would you? I told you to and Tom to not divulge this information and I merely told it to both so you could protect yourselves and her-"

"Am I that much of a dead weight?" Her plain question cuts Cass' speech and makes part of her anger disappear.

Cass frowns and immediately shakes her head. "No, no Liv. It's not like that... You just can't protect yourself like we can. And they aren't going to do anything... I just wanted them to be mindful of what was going on and that was all. Someone to look aft-" She makes a pause as if she wasn't going to continue down that particular chain of thought. However, the intent was clear. She had warned the brothers because she wanted someone to _look after Olivia_.

"That's hardly fair," Olivia interrupts her speech with an aggravated tone. "I should also know what's going on."

Cassandra narrows her eyes before sighing tiredly. "Damnit," she mutters as she rubs her forehead tiredly. "Liv you know that you're..." she trails off. Olivia raises an eyebrow in defiance, wanting to know what her exact words would be. "I'm just trying to protect you," she states instead of finishing her previous thoughts. "And I need your cooperation so I don't even want to risk you going to look for problems."

Olivia scoffs, throwing an **are you serious** look before jolting from her chair and slapping her hands hard on the table. "That's insane. You told them, trusting them enough to behave... Why am I always the one that is treated like an insane person? Do you think that I'd try to kill myself? Do you think I'm suicidal?"

Cass's laughs bitterly. "No... But can I trust you?" She shakes her head looking almost disappointed. "You should remember why you're in your current state Olivia, you did this to yourself."

"Bloody hell, I've told you that I didn't do anything!"

Alex was now looking slightly horrified to both of his siblings. "Everyone needs to calm down. We shouldn't argue." He was afraid that now both of them would be put on lock down.

"Of course not," Cass mutters paying no mind to his words. "Because these sort of thing just happens?"

Olivia groans. "It did just happen!"

"Woah people," James yells over them. "Let's not start the day like this," he says calmly as he looks to Cassandra. "The whole neighborhood can hear you guys and we don't need this kind of attention." He gives a look to the younger siblings, mentioning with his head to the exit. "Grab your stuff. We're leaving."

Cass sighs. "They haven't eaten." However, Olivia leaves the room - stomps her way out - without even acknowledging her words. Alex looks worriedly to the other siblings before following after her, walking hurriedly. "What?" She had a defensive expression.

He shakes his head. "Look, we're all worried and I know that this is really strange and I also want it to go back to normal-"

"Please, spare me the lecture," Cass mutters as she quickly finishes her coffee. Her appetite was lost. "You're too soft on them."

"And you're too hard. I know she got herself in a sticky situation but you should really stop throwing it to her face." When she glares he sighs. "She doesn't even remember Cassy and we haven't found a way to reverse it, let it go. Pressing too hard is going to make her break and we don't want that."

"He told her," Cassandra says instead. "It wasn't Tom, it was him."

James sighs, shaking his head a bit. "We knew that one of them would tell her… It was nothing like we hadn't anticipated."

"I told him not to but he did," she stresses as if she hadn't heard him. "I explained that it was best if she didn't know… that **knowing** could make everything worse for her mind… He told her regardless. You want me to let it go too?"

"The damage is done, isn't it?" He offers her a smile. "We're keeping an eye on them and it's not like they're going to try to find the vampire, okay?"

Cass reluctantly nods. "A fucking vampire of all things," she says through her clenched teeth. "At least it isn't him."

There was a tart smile in James lips. "You know was well as I that it's never going to be him. And if by any chance it ever is... he won't be alone." When they hear the teenagers on the stairs they both straighten their backs dropping the conversation. "I'll get them breakfast and I'll even drop them by the school despite messing up my schedule."

Cass waves off her hand. "They can get there by themselves, it's not like the vampire is lurking at daylight, right?"

Instead of replying to her, James looks to the two teenagers. "Ready?"

"Have a good day," Olivia mumbles before leaving.

Cass looks surprised to James - whenever the younger female argued with someone she'd always pretend that they didn't existed for a bit, however she seemed almost... agreeable. James merely shrugs before grabbing his keys and leaving. "I'll bring dinner today."

"Thank you," she says loudly as they leave.

They didn't spend too much time on the hospital. Like on the show, Vicki was sleeping when they got there. They did managed to catch Matt, who was leaving to change his clothes before going to school - he was also surprised that the Jackson's had come to check on his sister - but he hadn't told them anything they already didn't know. When Olivia left, her brother wanted to give her money so the pair could buy something to eat before going to school, Matt and Alex spoke more freely. She was beyond surprised to learn that Matt had told Alex that his sister had said it had been a vampire since she didn't know that they were close enough for him to disclosure that information.

Alex and Olivia parted ways inside the school. Olivia left him so she could catch up with Caroline before Tom got there and promised that she'd share whatever she learned by lunch. Caroline seemed surprised to see Olivia without Tom but apart from asking if something was wrong, she didn't dwell on it. After a brief conversation that revolved on checking out Vicki who had been attacked - something that Caroline hadn't been aware - that explained why Tom wasn't there, they continued onto more normal topics.

Wasting no time, Olivia goes right into the mission of trying to discover if her blonde friend had bumped into Damon. her plan was simple, first she'd try to find out their whereabouts - she was mostly convinced that if Caroline wasn't at the Grill she and the older Salvatore wouldn't meet right away - and then by trying to assess if she had seen someone new in the city.

"How was your night Care?"

Her blonde friend automatically grins, clearly she held good memories of her night. It was one of the good changes from the show, on the show Caroline had a miserable night... "It was close to perfect," she shares with the grin still in place. "At first I wasn't feeling it with Tyler and Donovan there... but it was a lot of fun."

"Yeah," Olivia agrees conversationally. "I meant when you and Tom left." She nudges her conspiratorially. "When I got home he wasn't there, despite you guys leaving earlier."

Caroline laughs and waves her hand dismissively. "We went to my house... if it weren't for worrying about Cassandra, he would have spent the night." In contrast to her previous behavior, Caroline now seemed almost bashful. "I **really, really** like him."

Olivia laughs as the worry that she might have bumped into Damon starts to lift. "He **really, really** likes you too."

Caroline looked beyond pleased with her words. "How about you?" She squints her eyes a bit. "Found someone that tickles you fancy?"

Olivia snorts before rolling her eyes. "I spent the rest of the party with Alex. Everyone ended up leaving us."

"How about Stefan?" Olivia raises an eyebrow that made Caroline cross her arms over her chest almost defensively. "What? He's cute."

"I fail to see how that matters."

Caroline rolls her eyes. "I am in a happy relationship... and I want my best friend to be happy too."

Olivia gaps. This was a recipe for disaster and she had to do something before it ended badly. "Uh... thank you but I'm fine." Caroline raises an eyebrow dubiously. "Pretty sure he and Elena will be together." She was one hundred percent sure but she could outright tell that to Caroline. "They'll be happy." _Somewhat happy, tons of issues but that's none of my business. Got enough to worry about and Elena's and Stefan's love life doesn't make into that list… not even the bottom of it._

"I know." Caroline sighs exasperatedly. "It's just... we're lacking in the male department and Stefan's nice. You deserve a nice guy."

"Thank you." Even if trying to set her up with a vampire was bizarre, she was oddly touched by Caroline's concern of her happiness. Sure, she wasn't looking for someone and she still held the hope that somehow she was going to find a way to return to her old life... but it was pleasant to have a friend. "No need to play Cupid, okay? I'm happy."

"If you say so," Caroline mumbles with uncertainly. "What do you think of our new guy anyway?"

If there were subjects that Olivia didn't want to discuss, Stefan belonged in that category. She knew Caroline well enough to know that her silence could be misinterpreted, so she had to give her blonde friend something - that preferably removed whatever hopes of playing matchmaker she had. "I don't really know him. He's nice enough, sort of quiet."

Caroline huffs. "Oh, I was told that he and Elena chatted the entire party-"

Things were taking a turn for the worse. It seemed that whatever problems Caroline had in the show with Elena, they were still present. "They're going to be a couple," Olivia interrupts. "I wish them the best." And they would certainly need luck.

"I guess so... it's just." Caroline groans. There was a self-deprecating smile on her lips. "Don't get me wrong. I really like Tom and Elena is my friend... but everything seems so easy for her."

Olivia rubs her back gently. This was the first time that she didn't feel like she was out of place or more accurately, stealing someone's place. Caroline was also her friend and her friend needed her support, so she'd give it. If anything, she was somewhat good at that sort of thing. "Hey, I'm sure it's not that easy for her too. She lost her parents and her life is a mess... Plus, you're a force of nature. You do things that no one else is able to, you shouldn't forget that. You are amazing Care."

Caroline smiles. "Yeah, you're right. I am amazing... Guess old habits die hard," she mumbles uncertainly. "Thanks for not... you know... think that I'm just jealous of her."

"Don't mention it." Caroline bumps her hip against hers with a grin making her laugh.

The day went fairly normal for her after that. She was well aware of what was happening in the background, but nothing seemed to directly reach her. Tom and Caroline were fine, there were no mentions of seeing someone new in town and Olivia was sure that she would comment if she saw Damon - and maybe so would Tom after all two new people in town was something out of the ordinary. Alex didn't have any new devolvement's either, however, he didn't know half of what was going on so that was expected. During lunch, Tom had given Caroline a necklace and had somehow wriggled out of the blonde a promise of always wearing it without rousing suspicion... so everything was fine. Sure, she had no clue on how she'd deal with it and she could barely remember how everything had went down... but at least on Caroline's front everything was fine (or so she hoped).

After school, she was dragged by Caroline to The Grill so she, along with Bonnie and Elena could prep for the Comet night. That was putting her on edge, it wasn't all due the fact that she was slightly uncomfortable because neither of her brothers would be there... but mostly because it signaled that time was indeed ticking away and she still didn't have a game plan. Alex had promised to keep an eye on both of the Donovan's and it seemed that Tom would be keeping an eye on him - if the constant stares were anything to judge. If anything, at least Tom and Alex would be fairly safe. Sure, Damon was an old guy... but Tom and Alex where witches, witches that had tapped into their powers so maybe they'd be able to deal with the situation or call their older siblings. She hoped that it didn't come to that or she was fairly certain that Damon would bite the dust and that could create complications with Stefan, in spite of the fact that they weren't on the best of terms.

They were folding the stack of programs when Bonnie started speaking about the comet, pulling the focus of the conversation from Elena's and Stefan's night. "Well, I was talking to Grams, and she said the comet is a sign of impending doom. The last time it passed over Mystic Falls, there was lots of death. So much blood and carnage, it created a bed of paranormal activity."

Caroline shots her a dubious, slightly mocking, look. "Yeah, and then you poured Grams another shot and she told you about the aliens." Caroline looks to Elena. "So then what?"

"So then nothing," Elena replies.

Caroline had an incredulous expression. "You and Stefan talked all night? There was no sloppy first kiss or touchy feely of any kind?"

"Nope. We didn't go there."

"Not even a handshake?" She pauses. "I mean, Elena, we are your friends. Ok?" She gestures to Bonnie, herself and Olivia. "You are supposed to share the smut."

"We just talked for hours."

Caroline snorts. "Talked for hours? Are you in kindergarten?"

"C'mon, it's sweet," Bonnie interrupts smiling in assurance to Elena. "Not everything has to end up with sex."

Caroline rolls her eyes as if she found their words silly. "Not saying that it does. But sex is a part of life. Please, she isn't exactly as pure as snow," she states making Elena look to the program slightly embarrassed.

"That was unnecessary," Bonnie mutters giving Caroline a pointed look.

"What's your opinion Libbie?"

She looks to Caroline's encouraging expression and to Bonnie's curious on slightly alarmed. Even Elena was giving her curious looks. "Uh."

"C'mon, you're really quiet, back me up, will you?"

Bonnie snorts. "You're awfully quiet."

She blinks again. She sighs when she realizes that in fact the ground wouldn't open beneath her feet and she wouldn't be able to vanish from their sight no matter how much she didn't want to participate in the conversation. "I really don't see how does my insight comes into play," she admits. "Elena seems happy and if she wanted more to happen I'm sure that she'd have done something else."

"Would she?" Caroline sighs and looks to Elena. "Just jump his bones already! Ok, it's easy. Boy likes girl, girl likes boy, sex! Plus, he's cute... it's a sin that you're not doing anything with that."

Elena raises an eyebrow. "Profound." She suddenly gets up surprising the other two girls.

"Where are you going?"

"Caroline's right." She gives a curt nod to the blonde that immediately smiles. "It is easy. If I sit here long enough, I'll end up talking myself out of it instead of doing what I started the day saying what I was going to do."

"Proud of you," Caroline says at the leaving figure.

Bonnie shakes her head with a smile on her lips. "Sometimes I don't know how to deal with you." She glances to Olivia, whose focus was still on the programs. "Nor how you do it."

Caroline swats her hand in Bonnie's direction. "Libbie loves me, I'm her BFF."

"Not contesting that but if you spoke about sex and your sex life was also my brothers' I'd be put off," Bonnie reasons.

Caroline scoffs as Olivia laughs. "She keeps the details to a minimum. They're happy, that's all that matters. No details to scar me for life."

Bonnie laughs. "Don't know what happened this summer but you really calmed down."

Olivia looks to the stack of programs she had folded feeling unsure. "Hey, Libbie's fine," Caroline immediately states jumping in the conversation. "Does it matter that she's not playing any pranks? She outgrew it."

Bonnie raises her hands in the air in mock surrender. "I didn't mean anything by it." She looks to Olivia and offers her a smile. "Sorry if I offended you."

She waves her hand in dismissal. "We're mint."

Bonnie furrows her eyebrows. "Uh?"

"We're fine," she says as an explanation.

Caroline rolls her eyes. "Clearly she's still the same," she tells Bonnie. "She now gets her kicks out of seeing us confused whenever she speaks."

"That wasn't nice." She had a faux pout that made Caroline giggle and gently grab her hand in reassurance.

"We're still 'mint'?"

She laughs at the silliness. "We're always mint."

Bonnie shakes her head with a smile on her lips. Caroline turns her attention to her as if she had suddenly remembered something. "Oh, what were you telling me about being clairvoyant?"

Bonnie peers into Olivia's face, who was controlling her expression so nothing out of the ordinary could be seen, before answering. "Uh, no. Technically, Grams says I'm a witch. My ancestors were these really cool Salem witch chicks or something. Grams tried to explain it all but she was sorta looped on the liquor so I kinda tuned out."

Caroline scoffs. "You should really control your grams liquor ingestion. I mean witches?"

"Exactly what I told her." Bonnie looked slightly more comfortable now. "Crazy family, yes. Witches? I don't think so."

Bonnie was now looking to Olivia as if she wanted her input. She shrugs her shoulders. "All families have their weird things, however Salem witches? That's cool... and sorta terrifying. Plenty of people died."

Caroline's nose was scrunched. "Let's not get into that." She smiles pleasantly. "So, we'll distribute the programs during the afternoon and I've everything prepped with the candles. You two plus Tom and Elena will give me a hand during the night."

Olivia suddenly blinks. What? The comet wasn't today? "Uh, tomorrow?"

Caroline nods with a small apprehensive look on her face. "Yeah." She makes a pause as she furrows her eyebrows. "You forgot?"

"I thought it was today," she confesses. It wasn't like she had discussed this with anyone prior to this. She could feel herself tensing. Was she forgetting the plot or was it just her old life? What else was she overlooking?

Caroline was looking worriedly to her. "Hey, are you okay?"

"You're looking... off," Bonnie mumbles in agreement.

She forces herself to relax, if anything she had another day to plot what to do. "Sorry." She waves off their apparent concern. "Just really surprised that it's tomorrow."

Caroline raises an eyebrow unconvinced. "We spoke about it last week when you and Tom helped me with the candles," she states. "I'm pretty sure I told you the date. Are you really okay Libbie?"

She nods. "I just muddled the dates, that's all." She honestly hoped that it was all.

* * *

All the work had been done, programs distributed, tasks divided... And supposedly it was now the part where they'd relax and enjoy the work that they had put into it. Olivia did not share the sentiment. Their plan was sloppy at best - once again they were winging it she hoped that it wouldn't end like last time - and they had two fronts to cover, Caroline who by her accounts hadn't even dreamed about Damon Salvatore and Vicki. She didn't even know whoever was in more danger. Vicki could very well die today even if in the show nothing too life threatening had happened, she had been tossed around but she had been over all fine, however, with the changes, who knew what would happen. Two, today would be the mark to signal if Caroline was in the path to become Damon's toy. Sure, she had vervain and a loving boyfriend but what would (or could) that mean to the vampire in question... if he wanted something, he'd get it.

Part of her wanted to divide and conquer, Alex would cover one end and she the other. That wasn't without risks and his brother had told her much when she discussed that possibility. They had to stay together to be stronger if they did bumped in to the vampire. She knew he was right but she didn't know what to do... She definitely liked Caroline more and wanted the blonde safe but she didn't feel well knowing that she'd leave Vicki Donovan to her own devices if said devices would result in injury.

"I'm going to The Grill," she tells Tom while Caroline chatted with Tyler. They were making plans to seeing the comet with the whole gang together. "I need a bottle of water."

Tom looks to Caroline before setting his attention on her. "I can go with you," he offers.

Alex interrupts, placing his hand over Olivia's shoulder. "You have a girlfriend to worry about." By the look on Tom's face - with was something akin to bitter and rage - she realized that he didn't get that Alex was speaking out of concern. Alex promptly clenches his jaw and narrows his eyes. "There's a vampire lurking, remember?" He mutters through gritted teeth smirking when Tom's expression turned into one of worry mixed with surprise.

Olivia flashes Alex a grateful smile. Oh, Alex was genial sometimes. "Yeah, don't leave her alone. We don't know what can happen," she adds trying to make sure that during the bit of time that they'd be away, Caroline wouldn't be without protection.

"Yeah, you're right. Sorry." His words seemed directed at her while she had preferred them to be spoken to Alex. Neither of the brothers seemed to share her observation. Alex grabbed her hand and pulled her away and Tom returned to Caroline.

"You are genial," she whispers with a grin on her lips.

Alex laughs, shaking his head. "I was just lucky." There was now a grin on his lips that mimicked hers. "We're a good team."

They either had terrible luck or really amazing luck. At the moment Olivia couldn't decide which applied to the situation. Vicki was staring at Damon and it seemed like they hadn't spoken to each other yet. She rapidly turns her attention to Alex - who was greeting a team mate that was there - wanting to get rid of him for a bit so he didn't connect the dots and realized that the vampire was Damon. Nothing good would result out of it.

"There's Vicki, you get me the water," she tells him.

He raises an eyebrow. "You really want water?"

She rolls her eyes. Sometimes he was a bit too smart for his own good. "It's a cover, Tom might ask." She gives him a pointed look that she hoped that was effective and when he walked away she barely contained the relief. However, she couldn't act suspiciously. Damon was there and Damon had really good hearing. "Hey!" She says loudly attracting not only her target's attention (Vicki) but also Damon's. She smiles and forces herself to ignore him. "You want to see the comet with us? Everyone is gathering outside." Now that she thought about it, wasn't this scene supposed to happen later when the comet was actually in the sky?

Vicki Donovan had a tentative smile on her lips. She didn't understand why all of the sudden a girl like Olivia Jackson seemed to be welcoming her into their group of friends but hoped that it meant that Tyler liked her. Even if it wasn't the case, the fact that she spent time with his usual friend could only add up to her chances. She glances to the stranger, who was now looking to his glass before walking to the girl. "Sure, I just have to finish up here."

Olivia smiles and nods her head. "Want me to wait up to take you to our spot?"

Vicki laughs and waves her hand in dismissal. "The Town Hall isn't that big." She's momentarily distracted by the younger Jackson approach. He handed Olivia a bottle of water before looking to her. If the girl seemed welcoming even if a bit frazzled - Vicki thought that it was the huge bandaged on her neck and was now starting to feel sort of self-conscious - the guy seemed cold and like he didn't want to be there. "I'll find you there."

"We'll be waiting," Olivia states before looking to her brother. "Thanks."

"You're welcome. We're done here?"

They were exchanging weird looks and it made Vicki realize that she really didn't know much about the Jacksons to understand what was going on. Well, she knew next to nothing about them... Both Tom and Alex were in the team and the later was good friends with Tyler seeing that they spent quite a bit of time training together. Apart from that and that they had a huge family - oh, the older one had been her doctor! Even if said doctor hadn't given her the good stuff, the guy was nice - they kept to themselves... Which was odd, now that she thought about it. Not only as football players was their popularity high but Olivia also had a cheerleader as best of friends... not to mention that she also spent time with her brother ex... She shakes her head as she realizes that she was thinking too much into it, after all, there was nothing wrong in keeping to themselves. They weren't shy or anything, but in a small town like this being private was expected. There were too many people readily spreading gossip so it was good that at least someone had a bit of sense.

Olivia nods. "We'll see you in a bit Vicki."

She smiles. "Thanks for the invite."

Olivia wasn't happy with Vicki not coming with them but she honestly didn't want to linger. Damon was around and she had to get away before she did something that attracted his attention. It was slightly disappointing, but hers and Alex's survival ranked higher than helping out Vicki... maybe she wasn't that good of a person. Plus, even if she was aware of what his goals were... the guy was more than a little off the rails at the moment and running into him wouldn't be good to anyone's health. So, in a way, her selfishness and self-preservation where justified. But then again, she could be just making excuses so she didn't feel as much as a shitty person.

Catching up on her mood, Alex questioned why she seemed so... _torn_ all of the sudden.

"I think I'm not a good person," she admits as they walk back. Her gaze was locked on the ground and she felt ashamed.

He snorts and pulls her into a halt. "Why?"

"I rather save myself and you than..." She lets the words trail in the air. When she was about to look to the ground again so she didn't see his disappointment, she hears him laugh.

"Maybe I'm not too," he mumbles offering her a smile. "I rather if we're safe than whatever it is... this." He pats her shoulder. "Family first."

She smiles. Sometimes he sounded like an Original and that thought alone was scary. "I don't even know what... what's the right thing to do."

"We'll figure it out," he promises. "We should get there before Tom launches a search party."

Eventually it became clear that Vicki Donovan wouldn't meet them. The comet had already passed and it was every bit as daunting as Olivia had expected it to be. Hoping that forwarding a bit would help the missing person - not that anyone was aware that she was missing - Olivia turns her attention to Matt.

"Do you know where Vicki is? I asked her to join us and she said she would." Alex nods in confirmation making Matt furrow his eyebrows.

Caroline also seemed confused. "You invited her?"

"Why would you?" Tyler quips giving her an odd look. "Didn't know you were friends."

She immediately crosses her arms over her chest. Vicki Donovan had never been one of her favorite characters, worse than that, Vicki Donovan hadn't even one anything to catch her attention long enough to be on the list of characters she disliked. She was... inconsequential. However, if there was something that had always pissed her off was how Tyler treated said girl. "Unlike you, I was taught some manners Lockwood." He raises his hands in the air mockingly.

It seemed like the fact that she was intervening made whatever forces controlling the story interfere. Soon Jeremy was next to Elena - who was brooding ever since her conversation with Stefan had ended - asking about Vicki. "You guys saw Vicki?"

Tyler scoffs. "You're her stalker. You tell us."

"I can't find her," Jeremy states after glaring.

"She probably found somebody else to party with. Sorry, pill pusher, I guess you've been replaced." Tyler sniggers.

Elena furrows her eyebrows and turns to Tyler. "What's with the pill pusher?"

"Ask him," Tyler instructs her.

Sadly, or fortunately - depending on the view - Olivia had enough. "Enough, alright." Everyone was looking to her with surprised expressions. "You two can size up your dicks at a later date. We ought to find her." At her words she looks to Alex and Tom so they were aware of what was happening - sort of, she hoped that her look made the later think about vampires and that it would mean that he'd keep his guard up.

Matt is the first to recover from her outburst. He shots her a grateful smile. "I'll check the square."

Jeremy promptly offers, "I'll come with you."

Elena narrows her eyes. "Oh, no, no, no. You are coming with me and Bonnie." She looks at said girl. "We'll check the Grill?"

"We can divide the square," Tom mumbles looking to Caroline who nods.

Alex, unlike the rest, seemed deeply amused. "Measuring dicks? Who knew you were so... **crass**." He trails off mockingly.

"Effective way of making them stop," she declares before a small - totally not appropriate - smile appearing on her face. "I actually always wanted to say that."

"What's our plan?"

She didn't really know about vampire hearing range, so she took out her phone and quickly types: **Look around and I'll look up. They are around.** She didn't know exactly where, but Stefan had found them when he was in a parking lot.

He raises an eyebrow probably wondering why she was writing all of the sudden. Trusting her to have a decent reason for it, he removes the phone from her hands. **Okay, tell me any details if you know them.**

 **Uh, parking lot and some people lingering in the background** , she writes before handing him the phone. "We should hurry."

He looks at written message before deleting it. "Yeah." He grabs her by the hand and starts dragging her.

They wander for a while and she couldn't really spot anyone in the roofs they had also passed by several parking spaces but nothing seemed to fit her faint memories of the even - it was times like these that she cursed the fact that she didn't have eidetic memory. The only progress they made was stumbling to Stefan that was holding onto Vicki. It was clear that he hadn't planned on being caught and maybe it was the fact that he had many more years of acting under his belt, but he merely smiled pleasantly before guiding the girl to them.

"I found her wandering," he offers as an explanation. Olivia didn't know if she should feel grateful or not. Everything had gone - to her knowledge - like on the show and she felt like she owed an apology for her callousness to the girl. However, Damon did scare her shitless.

"Sorry," Vicki mumbles slightly dazed. "I guess I got lost?"

Alex was giving them both suspicious looks. "You found her?"

Stefan's nonchalant expression hardens a bit. He gives Alex a curt nod. "Matt told me she was missing."

"Where was she?" Alex presses.

Olivia knew that if she didn't interfere something bad could happen. Scratch that, something terrible was in the making with this conversation. It was clear that Alex's distrust was alarming Stefan - who might do something about it if this got worse - and Alex was finding his timing just a little too opportune. "You're bleeding," she tells Vicki loudly so she could attract their attention. "We better take you somewhere to put a bandage on it." It also didn't helped that Alex's questions where making a former ripper spend time next to blood and she wasn't sure if the prolonged stay wouldn't make his control slip. Being dinner wasn't a part of her plans... not that anything seemed to be going according the feeble plans she had made. "Warn everyone Liam, please."

He gives Stefan a harsh look before pulling his phone. "I'll call Matt before texting the others."

Vicki, as if she only noticed now that she was with people laughs it off. "Don't worry man. I'm fine." Her hand was still pressed against her neck. "My stiches ripped though... I must have fallen." _You were tossed around between vampires, you're lucky that all you got was ripped stitches._

"Uh, I should really go," Stefan mumbles looking to Olivia. When he noticed that Alex - even if he was at a slight distance - looking to them he amended, "Looks like you got everything covered."

"Sure-"

Alex disconnects the call. "Shouldn't you stay around in case Matt has questions?" He gestures to Vicki who seemed in an oblivious bliss. "She's out of it."

Olivia considered just how wrong she had been. Through the show she had never found the character Stefan the most expressive of the bunch, but - maybe it was because she was close - that had been a poor assessment. It was clear that Stefan was torn, he had clearly noticed that Alex was suspicious (maybe he didn't suspect that Alex and her knew about vampires) of his involvement in the whole thing but at the same time, it was clear that his control was slipping. He was fidgeting, hiding his face under the excuse of checking their surroundings, and he wasn't at all pleased at this development. "We got her," Olivia says amicably. Making Stefan stay was a disaster in the making. "How about we walk to the Grill," she coos at the oblivious girl. "And wash you up." She starts walking, one arm thrown around Vicki's waist, as she wonders just what had the girl ingested to be so out of it.

"You're pretty nice," Vicki comments as Alex hurries to match her pace - she hoped that it would give space to Stefan disappear even if it would undoubtedly rouse suspicion with Alex if he did so. "Even if you're pretty weird."

Olivia laughs it off. "No one is normal nowadays," She shares. "Being normal sounds a bit boring anyway."

Alex kept glancing back - to make sure that Stefan was following them and the vampire was to her surprise - and to his sister, trying to understand what was going on. Clearly there was something happening that he wasn't seeing and he did wonder if his sister was missing the weird vibes he was getting from Stefan or knew more than she was letting on. "Matt suggested we met them at the Grill."

Vicki seemed impressed. "Woah, how did ya'know? You're like magic?"

Alex rolls his eyes and Olivia laughs the tension out of her. "It's the only place still open Donovan."

Vicki scoffs. "You're an ass. Like Tyler. You're both a like."

"Please don't insult my brother," she tells Vicki pleasantly. "He's great." Vicki nods with a silly smile on her lips. It just served to make Olivia further wonder just how out of it she was and just how Jeremy had gotten clearly strong drugs.

"You can come closer," Alex mutters throwing a glance to Stefan. "We're not gonna bite you."

Olivia, however, did had to bite her lower lip hard so she didn't laugh. This whole ordeal had frazzled her brain. "Don't push him Liam."

Alex merely scoffs. "He's rude," mutters. The vampire remains silent and continues following them - she wondered if he was silent because he was losing his control or if he couldn't make himself respond pleasantly after the shitty night he was having.

Thankfully, they had gotten to the Grill pretty quick. Matt was by the door and quickly pulled the girl into his arms. "Thanks," he tells the trio.

"You should take care of her neck," Olivia advises. "Maybe she should drop by the hospital later... I could see if Jimmy's there..."

He flashes her a grateful smile. "It's okay, I'll take her there later." He pulls her inside and Olivia could almost feel the tension slowly leaving Stefan's body.

Alex, however, kept glancing at the guy. "How **did** you find her?"

"I heard her," he states casually. What surprised her was the fact that he was telling them the absolute truth, he had in fact found her because listened to her screams and whimpers. "Matt had told me she was missing."

Even if Alex didn't seem all sold out on the matter, he seemed like he was about to let it go. "Man, I need a drink," he shares giving Olivia a meaningful glance. "You want something?"

"Whatever you're having," she answers before squeezing his hand. When he entered the Grill, she turned her attention to Stefan being sure that a smile was on her face. She had to do some damage control before something bad happened because of Alex's behavior. "Sorry about my brother."

Stefan shakes his head. "Brothers are hard."

She knew that his was definitely harder to deal with than hers. "Isn't that the truth," she agrees. "Sisters too."

"Big family?"

She nods. "We're eight." He raises his eyebrows. "I know." By the look on his face it was like he was imagining what it would be like if he had to deal with eight Damon's. "Anyway, thanks. We're a bit worried that we wouldn't find her."

"No, it's okay." He walks a bit closer to her, looking much more at ease - she faintly wonders if that meant that he could no longer smell Vicki's blood. "Why was he acting... like that?"

She had hoped that he wouldn't question but had found it unlikely. "Everyone's a bit worried right now. People dying left and right and Vicki was attacked in town by an animal."

Stefan nods. "I get that."

"When he's worried he gets a bit... like that," she ends up saying. "It's nothing personal but I apologize if it made you feel out of place."

He waves her apology off. "He was right. Matt might have questions and I was the one that found her... I'm just not a fan of blood," he says meekly with a self-deprecating smile that would have totally fooled her if she didn't know who he was. "Sound bad, uh?"

"Everyone's entitled of feeling uncomfortable." She makes a pause thinking about her words so she didn't give anything away. "You do better than most," she states. "I once saw someone faint at the sight so I know it can get rough." It was by no means a lie, one of her cousins - who she couldn't remember neither the name nor the face - always fainted at the sight.

He smiles to her pleasantly. She could almost see one of his dimples. "We should get inside before you catch a cold. The temperature is dropping."

She nods and walks inside. "Thanks," she mumbles almost embarrassedly when he opens the door for her.

He didn't have a chance to say something because soon Caroline was pulling her into a hug. "Your ass of a brother just told us you were here." She pauses when she notices Stefan and smiles, glancing inquisitively to Olivia that shot her a pointed look. "With Stefan..."

"I'd like to sit down," she mumbles as Caroline lets her arms drop. "With luck Liam ordered me something warm."

Caroline snorts. "He had two beers when I saw him." She looks to him. "Joining us?"

"Yes."

Then everything went like it was on the show. Matt thanked Stefan again, Elena wasn't around so Bonnie gave Stefan her number, touching his hand a freaking out which in turn made the Jackson's look to her and Stefan trying to spot whatever had made Bonnie flee. Caroline was invited to spend the night at her house - sharing her room - which surprised Tom seeing that Alex had been with her when she asked Cass. It had been a precaution and Olivia sincerely hoped that it served to further remove Caroline from Damon's radar - Olivia was almost 100% certain that she hadn't so much as glanced in his direction so it all pointed to a success.

She didn't even want to consider Tanner's death and merely wanted to have a good night of sleep. With luck, tomorrow would be the day she was finally back to her old life... Dealing with the show's plot - despite the fact that she had really fell in love Caroline and the Jackson's - was too much for her and she wanted her old, calm and boring life back. Yeah, maybe tomorrow would be the day... She just had to hang on for a little longer and she'd return to seeing the show instead of living it.


	4. 004

_._

 _I'm sick of all the games I have to play_

 _I'm tired of being careful, tiptoe, trying to keep the water warm_

 _Let me under your skin_

 _Uh-oh, there it goes, I said too much, it overflowed_

 _Why do I always spill?_

 _I feel it coming out my throat_

 _Guess I better wash my mouth out with soap_

 _God, I wish I never spoke_

 _Now I gotta wash my mouth out with soap_

Soap – Melanie Martinez

 **A.N.: I hope you like it despite starting off slow - I figured that the Jackson siblings needed to get some things off their chest before all the drama started. I'd like to thank every single one of you guys, the ones that read, leave reviews, favourite and follow the story. So, thank you. And on another note: Happy holidays to you all :3**

* * *

Olivia was beyond tense during the morning. She didn't have a restful sleep that had little to nothing with the blonde that had slept beside her – Olivia had learned that Caroline moved quite a bit during her sleep. The source, or rather sources, of her morning stress were due three main factors: she hadn't returned to her crappy apartment, she had a violent nightmare at some point and Alex was giving her odd looks.

Thankfully, Caroline had woken her up but the damage had been done, she wasn't able to sleep again. The worst part was that she didn't even know if it had been a mere nightmare or memories from Olivia Jackson. There was a man that frequently appeared on her less than pleasant dreams and it was always the same. She'd be alone with him, he'd be pulling her in the direction of stairs before something happening and him letting go of her small hand. Then he'd snarl, his iris would turn blood red - the man was a vampire that much she know knew - before being tackled by yet another person she didn't know. She would always fall and she knew that she was covered in blood, hell, there was blood everywhere. But what made this particular nightmare even more frightening than the countless other times she had seen this was the fact that there was a woman on the floor. The blonde woman had her mouth open and her neck had been torn open, as if someone with a really large mouth had taken a bite out of it - there were so many... fleshy bits sticking - her eyes that were wide open chocolate brown, were glazed and dull. That was when she'd start screaming. The woman was the source of all the blood that was still lukewarm. She was covered in her blood and that not only horrified her but made her feel beyond sad.

She didn't know if this was a memory it could very well be a concoction of her mind. This universe was particularly violent, even if there wasn't that many graphic things as there could be on the show itself... Still, it could bring out gory nightmares out of her. But then again, it made her wonder if it in fact was a memory. Alex and Tom had told her that their mother was murdered by a vampire and that their father was chasing whoever was responsible for it. Did Olivia Jackson witness their mother's death?

Caroline had obviously freaked out when she started screaming bloody murder. Hell, in a rare feat, she woke up half of the household. Alex, Cassandra and Tom being the first to burst open the door of her bedroom - in her distress she almost missed the stake that Cassandra had on her hand. Their presence made everything even more distressing. Their questions and the fact that 'it was a nightmare' made Cassandra ask more questions instead of leaving her be. Alex and Cassandra even gave Caroline some dirty looks - the girl was rather frazzled - as if she had been the one to blame. Hell, she was sure that if it wasn't the middle of the night the Jackson siblings would have asked Caroline to leave, kindly or otherwise.

At one point James made everyone leave the room wishing her a more restful sleep. But by then Caroline was the one trying to assure her that everything was fine - if she were in a better mood, the display of care would have made her smile, but she just couldn't shake the feeling. Olivia just wanted to be left alone in silence.

In the morning, thankfully, Caroline was pretending that nothing out of the ordinary had happened. Sure, she gave her several worried glances, but there were no questions asked. She allowed Caroline to play dress up with her and they went for breakfast. Her family was in the same page, worried looks but no further discussion even if she was aware that it was only for Caroline's benefit. And that was why at first she hadn't realize that Alex was trying to catch her alone. By the time that they were walking to school, he had either slowed down or hurried his step trying to, she assumed, speak with her. The look on his face, even if it had worry in it, had something else and that... that honestly scared her. It was if he was at the verge of discovering something and either way, since she was hiding a lot of things, it wouldn't end well. She would only discover what he wanted during lunch when she momentarily got separated from Tom and Caroline.

She had been thinking about how she didn't have a clue how she should deal with any of the shit happening - and it was a long list of shit, memories that didn't belong to her, losing the ones that did, nightmares (or maybe bloody memories), being in a universe with a really high death rate, not knowing if she should change stuff or not (or even if she could - the knowledge that Vicki been bitten after she tried to prevent it was still fresh), Damon lurking around... it was simply too much and it made her miss her previously boring life even more.

If she wasn't so depressed, she would have laughed. Alex was walking to her, glancing several times around as if he was checking for danger in a poor impression of a spy in a cheesy movie. When he noticed that she was in fact alone, he hurried his step, bumping into a couple of people in the path, with his eyes widen in incredulity.

When he finally gets to her, he grabs her hand and pulls her outside. "I thought they were lurking."

"Don't start," she mumbles tiredly. "If anything, you would be the one lurking."

He scoffs, rolling his eyes. "They wouldn't leave you alone and I wanted to speak with you." Her body tenses automatically making him sigh with a worried look. "Was the nightmare a... uh... vision?"

Her body relaxes with his question. She was afraid that he'd ask about Stefan and the weird behavior he displayed last night... "No." Thinking about it made her stomach lurch. "I... I have no idea what that was."

He was still pulling her away, she realizes that he was taking her out of the school. "Wanna speak about it?"

 _Did she?_ She sighs. She glances in his direction, his expression only hinted worry but it didn't look like he'd press if she said no. She takes a deep breath trying to prepare herself for speaking about it - relive her nightmare, in a way. "There was a lot of blood," she mumbles after couple of seconds of silence. If she closed her eyes, she was sure that she'd see the scene again. "Someone dead... a vampire too. I have no clue what that was all about."

He looked as confused as she was. "Maybe it's 'cause you know that there's one around?" He offers with an apologetic smile. "That shit gets in your head."

She nods, his words did make sense... She doubted that it was that, but it sounded as good of a reason as anything else. "You too?"

At first it seemed like he wouldn't answer. He huffs. "Yeah." He was giving her a meaningful look that she couldn't decode. "With all that's happening, I don't think I'll have good dreams anytime soon." Her eyes were on the ground. She suddenly felt really guilty, she had pulled Alex to danger - even more than he already was just because he existed in TVD universe. "No, no." There was a faint smile on his lips and he gently bumps his shoulder against hers. "It's not on you Fred. I'm glad that you told me."

"Maybe I shouldn't have."

"You're stupid then." The serious look on his face disappeared when she frowns. He starts laughing. "C'mon, I'm trying to cheer you up."

"Doing a bloody bad job," she states teasing him back feeling a bit relived that he wasn't angry.

He rolls his eyes. "I don't think I am." He flashes her a grin. "But if so, burgers on me maggot."

"You spoil me so much," she mumbles with a grin on her lips.

During lunch the stress and tension she felt throughout the morning dwindle. Alex did a good job of distracting her and when her phone rang he was the one that dealt with the backlash of Tom's and Caroline's concern. She left the Grill in an overall good humor that lasted during the day - and by the look on Alex's face, he was damn proud of having been able to clear her head of her depressing thoughts.

On a regular day (if she could call it that) Olivia would leave the school as soon as classes finished and even when she didn't, she wouldn't normally stay to watch Caroline's or Tom's and Alex's practice. It had been rather easy to explain her presence, she merely mumbled that she didn't wanted to be alone and they left her be even if it wasn't exactly the truth. She thought that Caroline was out of harm's way - as far as she knew Damon and Caroline hadn't even seen each other till date - but she was afraid, or rather, wasn't willing to bet the girls safety on what she thought. So, in case he dropped by she'd be there... to do something. Or at least she really hopped that she could do something, something that didn't involve herself or Alex and Tom outing themselves as witches to the older Salvatore brother... because that would be bad. In fact, bad was an understatement, outing themselves would be like going to hell. And she was already at her limit, she didn't need things to add on to it.

She watched with mild interest Stefan joining the team. Her interest wasn't due the vampire joining, she had previous knowledge of it, it was due the stance her _brothers_ had taken on it. It was one of those times that it was crystal clear that Tom and Alex had night and day personalities (and friendships). Things progressed as they had in the show when it was announced that Stefan would join the practice but when it was time for the 'buddy pass' it had been Tyler and Alex setting it up. Whereas Tom had been the first to go help Stefan up, shoving Alex away with what looked a scoff in his face, Alex merely patted Tyler's helmet enthusiastically seemingly unfazed. Even if Olivia was aware that he was injured, Stefan didn't look like he was in severe pain. Sure, he looked winded as he spoke with Tom who kept glancing at the perpetrators. Whereas Matt, having removed his helmet, looked somewhat guilty, Tyler and Alex looked like they had done nothing wrong at all. Hell, they looked like they were proud of their stupid shenanigans.

Another difference had been the cheerleading practice. Unlike on the show, Elena had been asked to observe their movements' right in the beginning. Sure, she had been put at the back - Caroline did state at some point that she had to learn the new routine - but she was encouraged to participate, mimicking the new movements and executing the ones she already knew. That didn't mean that Caroline wasn't hard on her, it was obvious that her blonde friend took cheerleading seriously, and she was constantly calling out Elena to point out her mistakes but Caroline would often walk to her and show her whatever it was that made Elena struggle. Elena, at the end of practice, looked mildly angry and rushed away with Bonnie hot on her trail. At the abrupt departure, Caroline looked at her with a frown on her lips making Olivia smile apologetically - she was sure that the blonde, in her own way, only meant to help out Elena. Still, Olivia couldn't decide which version was the worst: the one she had witnessed or the one in the show...

"Don't tell me you stayed to watch the new guy," Tyler says startling her. She had been so focused on what was happening with Caroline and Elena that she hadn't noticed that the football practice had ended.

Tyler was in front of her alone. That was strange since all of the interactions she had with the guy had been in the presence of others and there was also the fact that they mostly poked fun at each other. Sure, it was pretty harmless... No one ended up offended but still... she didn't expect him to approach her especially since he was asking about Stefan. Alex was a little behind him, glaring at Tom who was currently speaking with Stefan while Matt shook his head.

"No," she replies raising an eyebrow. "I have brothers on the team in case you forgot."

Alex pats his shoulder somewhat hard before giving her a cheeky grin. "We did give you something to watch."

She rolls her eyes and shakes her head a bit. "You guys are assholes," Matt mutters giving them both pointed looks. "Even if..." He trails off looking uncomfortable and divided. "He helped my sister."

Tyler scoffs as he starts removing parts of his equipment. "And?" At Matt's displeased expression he grunts. "The guy is here not even a week. He has your girl, now he's on the team and five minutes later everyone is treating him like he's walking on water. He doesn't get to be the hero without the work."

"You don't get to decide that man," Matt mutters. "I feel shitty now."

Alex laughs. "Why would you? It's all on me and Lockwood."

"And why did you even go with it?" Matt gives him another pointed look that made Alex puff of his chest and clench his left hand. "Your brother and." He makes a pause looking to Olivia as if he had just remembered that she was there. "Uh, Olivia get along with him."

"What of it?" Alex's face was hard. "I'm not them and I have opinions of my own."

"I don't like the guy," Tyler states steering the conversation back to Stefan again. "He looks at everyone like he's better. I mean, he's here a couple of days and didn't bother to do anything apart from chasing your girl and now he's on the team? Fuck that."

Olivia sighs. As much as she didn't want to get involved in the argument, things seemed like they were escalating. "Enough, okay? You're starting to sound like girls... bitchin'," she mumbles unsure of her usage of the word. "And I don't have it in me to break off... cat fights."

At first she thought she had said something wrong when Tyler and Matt look to her with wide eyes - comically wide. Alex is the one that breaks the tension by bursting in laughter. "Swear to god Fred, you say the weirdest shit." Soon Tyler joins as Matt shakes his head with a small smile on his lips.

"Uh oh, incoming," Tyler says with a grin that didn't match his words. He was slightly jumping on his feet as if he was preparing for something and couldn't contain his excitement.

When she follows his gaze, she sees Tom walking to them looking pissed. "What the hell was that?"

Tyler snorts. "Something the matter?"

He glares. "I know what you did." He turns his attention to Matt. "Tell me you weren't in on it."

Matt's gaze falls to the ground in shame. "Uh."

"I know that things are delicate," Tom states with a calm but cold tone. "But it doesn't give the right to any single one of you. It was a douche move."

Alex snorts. "Looks like we're in trouble. Golden boy doesn't approve."

"Bloody hell," she mutters loudly attracting their attention. "You twats have nothing better to do but to argue?" She focus on Tom. "Do your speeches even work? If these two want to act out you know that they will if anything you are encouraging them." When Alex grins she gives him a pointed look. "Doesn't mean its okay to walk around doing that. Imagine that this went horribly wrong and you injured the guy... You two idiots could have gotten your arses suspended."

Tyler scoffs. "We'd gotten a fucking trophy. Tanner hates his guts."

"It was a... initiation ritual," Alex says amicably sharing a look with Tyler - who responds with a grin, nodding approvingly.

Tom looked like he was disappointed with everyone. "Fuck this." With that he storms away.

She was watching him walk away when Tyler nudges her. "Not gonna storm off after him?"

"No." She looks to Alex who had replied for her. "Shit would get worse. He needs some alone time."

Tyler nods. "Weird shit. Never saw you guys argue." Alex raises an eyebrow making him chuckle. "Them," he clarifies. "You and he are always at it."

"That's because you two are always doing shit," Matt counters. "Anyway I need to go. See you tomorrow."

"Going with you. Later Jacksons." Tyler taps Alex's shoulder and nods his head with a smile in her direction before walking away with Matt.

Once they were alone, Alex looks to her. "You're better?"

"Yeah."

He nods before placing his sweaty hand on her shoulder. "After he cools down he'll be okay... depressed, but okay." When she raises an eyebrow he offers her a faint smile. "It was the first time you didn't rush after him Fred," he explains.

She looks to the ground. "Oh." Since she didn't want to think of the implications that her actions, or lack thereof, could have she decides to change the subject. "Why did you play along with him?"

Alex's face hardens. "There's something off about him."

She mentally screams at her stupidity. Oh this was a conversation she didn't want to have. "You think that Tom will be in the locker room?"

He raises an eyebrow but doesn't comment on her abrupt topic change. "Probably." She starts fidgeting since she didn't really know how to act. Should she say something? Would Tom even listen? Would Alex and Tom resume arguing? He pokes her forehead somewhat hard making her blink her eyes. "Stop overthinking."

"I... I'm not," she mumbles as she adverts her gaze to the ground. "I'm... I'm just out of it."

He abruptly stops walking and gives her a serious look that made all the small hairs in the back of her neck raise. If there was anything she had learned about him, was that serious Alex rarely appeared and that serious Alex was intense. Hell, the look he was giving her made her freeze in her spot to listen to him. "I know, **we** all know that you're out of it... you have to stop worrying about it," he tells her somewhat sternly. "Look, whether we want to accept it or not something happened that messed with your mind." She was fully aware that he had used _something_ and not **spell** since she was still pretty adamant about not casting anything to cause this. A small part of her was thankful, even if she didn't know if he believed her or not... it was nice of him to at least humour her. "This shit is way harder for you than any of us. I mean, most of us are worried or even depressed that you are **unlike** yourself... Moping about it doesn't help nor does you overthinking everything you do. There isn't a right thing to do... You forcing it only makes it worse, so... Stop, be you." He offers her a small smile. "Okay?"

She nods. "I'm surprised." When he raises an eyebrow she smiles. "How someone that's really immature at times can be wise beyond their years."

He bumps into her. "I'm awesome."

Her expression sobers a bit. "Do you... uh..." She suddenly regrets almost asking if he missed his real sister. "Never mind."

"Tell me." When she shakes her head he gives her a pointed look. "Just tell me."

When it seemed like he wouldn't relent, she sighs. "Do you miss how things were?"

"Sometimes," he says truthfully. "I miss our prank wars," he tells her cheekily as if to soften his words. "You're still you to me. Yeah, you're different... You take things more seriously and it's like you forgot how to have fun," he states giving her a worried look. "Then there's all this shit happening... I'm worried."

"I don't know if." She takes a deep breath of air to prepare herself for her next words. "If I'll ever return to who I was." Her words weren't only for him, it was for herself too. She had to start thinking about what she'd do if she discovered that she was stuck here for a foreseeable future.

Alex nods. He gives her an encouraging smile. "Doesn't matter Fred. You're family." He then pats her arm. "We gotta go, I'm stinking and the coast is probably clear... so you got time to think how you'll deal with Tom." She nods as she follows him inside of the building.

Even if at first the conversation with Alex had reassure her a bit his **you're family** tidbit made her feel incredibly guilty and a liar. Sure, in the first months she told them that she wasn't, she stressed that she was Olivia Harper and not Olivia Jackson. Nowadays, well, she had stopped saying that. She didn't want to hurt them and it hadn't been like they had listened to her. No matter what she said, they told her that she was their sister and that was that. She was also sure that Olivia Jackson would want her head when she returned - and she had to return because she didn't know what she'd do if she couldn't return to her world, the real world. She had fucked up some of her relations - like with Tom and Cassandra. It also made her wonder how was the girl coping with suddenly living alone, with a really small family and no magic. Did she hate her world?

Her musing about the state that everything was and about the other Olivia last till she gets to the Jackson's household. Alex didn't try to start a conversation, it was as if he had expected her to act like she was, he even walked with her through the longer route to the house as if he wanted to have more time. She only stopped thinking about the situation and how she should handle everything - and maybe come up with a long term plan - because by the door of their house was Tom. Tom, like Alex had predicted, was looking depressed.

"Can we speak?"

Alex didn't give her time to reply. "I'm going to go inside... Don't forget that you promised to help me out with the English assignment."

That was a total lie, but she nods. At her agreement, he flashes her a smile and walks inside completely ignoring the depressed demeanor of his older brother. "Uh, Olivia." She widens her eyes a bit, it was the first time that Tom had called her by her full name. "I..." He takes a deep breath of air. "I really don't know how to deal with this," he admits as he sits on the front steps of the house.

She nods as she approaches him. "I don't either."

"I know. I know you're doing your best," he tells her gently. "It's that... We, we were always... close." He closes his eyes taking another breath of air. "And I honestly feel like you're a stranger now."

"I'm sorry," she mumbles.

He looked like he regretted his words. "It's not your fault... well, per say," he says with a pained smile on his lips. "I'm confused. I don't know where I stand with you and I admit that I'm not coping with the changes as I should."

"Tom..."

He raises his hand. "No, look... Just let me get it out of my chest. I'm not coping with the changes," he admits. "I don't understand why you go to Alex." Tom looked embarrassed and avoided her gaze. "I... god, this makes me feel like an asshole, but... Why? Why him? Why not me?"

"I..."

He shakes his head, interrupting her once again. "I blame myself," he mumbles looking to her, dead in the eyes. "I thought that you'd return to normal in no time... Maybe I should have spent more time with you..."

God, this conversation was making her feel even shittier. "It's not you Tom," she tells him. "If I was your Olivia-"

"But you are now, aren't you?" The pained smile was once again in his lips. "If any of us could make you return to normal... we would and so would you... Most of the days it doesn't seem like you enjoy... being here... So if any of us could, you included, I'm sure that we wouldn't be in this situation." Her eyes widen, she was aware that his intention hadn't been to hurt her, however, his words did pain her. "I'm sorry."

"No." She shakes her head. "You're on your right. I'm sure that if I was in your shoes I'd be hurt too and yeah, I can't do anything. If I could, I'd give everyone back their Olivia," she admits. "And, I'd go to my world." She flashes him a small smile. "I'd miss everyone but things would be better for everyone."

"I shouldn't... Fuck." He sighs. "I don't want to make things worse... What do you say to starting over?" He smiles. "I'm Tom, your twin and I'm apparently a dick that has shitty conversations with you that end up with both of us feeling bad."

She laughs. "I'm Olivia." She extends her hand to him that he immediately shakes. "It's nice to meet you."

"After this conversation, I doubt it. But I do appreciate your effort." He gets up and offers his hand to her. "James made dinner," he states conversationally.

"Really?" She scrunches her eyebrows. "Let me guess, spaghetti."

He laughs. "You've blown my mind with your prediction," he says mockingly as they enter the house. "How did you know?"

The only thing that James could cook was spaghetti, she had never seen him cook anything for dinner or lunch in all the time she had been there. "I got magical powers," she teases him with a grin making an effort to end the day - or at least this part of the day - in a positive note. "Plus, once you said James and dinner... it was set in stone."

"Yeah. James and dinner always equals to spaghetti."

James narrows his eyes to the pair. "Sounds like someone won't have a second serving." He huffs his chest. "And I'll have you critics know that I've used basil in my tomato sauce, so it's not the same old thing. The cookbook promised that it will make my already awesome spaghetti shine."

Maybe it was because the day had been strange or that the insanity of the situation had finally caught up. Olivia on that moment burst in laughter surprising both of the Jacksons. Not that she knew why was she laughing exactly, his words hadn't been that funny and in all honesty, his food was pretty good. Hell, her laughs were so loud and frenzied - as if her life depended on laughing - that even Alex wandered inside the kitchen looking puzzled. After seeing she was a mess of laughs, being held by Tom (who was feeling something between marvel and fear) so she didn't fall, he snorts.

"Stop laughing loonie. No one here is that funny."

James shakes his head with a smile on his lips. "Even if I'm glad that I've amused you... go change Liv. I'll give you the privilege of being my sous chef."

She grins as she composes herself. "I'm humbled and overjoyed Chef."

When she rushes up the stairs, feeling better than she had in a long time - maybe she had indeed lost her plot - she heard James say, "About time she relaxed."

* * *

Olivia jumps from the bed sweating, her heart was beating wildly and at first she thought that maybe she had fallen from the bed. She couldn't exactly remember dreaming anything out of the ordinary - her dreams hadn't been plagued with violence, blood or body parts nor with weird appearances from the Jacksons. It had been sort of silly. She had been reading something, a beat up notebook of sorts, but for the life in her she hadn't been able to make up the words. She had been trying to decode what was written when she felt a headache and... bam, she was wide awake now. As if the sleep had been scared out of her. She glances around, trying to determine if something had changed but, alas, she was still in the same bedroom she had woken up months ago. Sure, it had changed a bit. There were no pencils scattered or half drawn sheets of paper, now there were several books. The grimoires that Alex had brought to her - claiming that while she searched those he'd look for answers about her 'visions' in others - were still tucked under her mattress due the sleepover she had with Caroline... But apart from that the room was still as she had found it.

She quietly leaves the bed knowing that she wouldn't be able to sleep easily. Once she was in the ground she suddenly freezes. What if someone had caused her the weird dream? What if there was someone there? Holding onto the necklace, that suddenly felt too hot against her palm, she tiptoes around the room trying to spot something strange as she gathered her courage to peek through the window. There was nothing wrong, everything was as she had left before going to bed. Nothing was outside and when she left the room, no one was around - not that she had expected to find one of the Jacksons there laughing at her scared demeanor.

She decides to make herself a tea - thankfully Amanda was a heavy tea drinker and had plenty around - to try and calm herself. If she kept the paranoia, she was sure that she'd end up dying from a heart condition. Given that she was unlucky - being in such a dangerous universe was proof of that - James was in the kitchen as well. He was sitting in the table, looking at something and he nearly fell down the chair when he saw her. He quickly closed the book, giving her a pointed look as if she had done something wrong. As far as she knew, entering the kitchen at odd hours of the night didn't normally warranted this reception.

"Jesus Crist, you scared me." The book had been placed under yesterday's paper and that did strike her as odd behavior.

"It wasn't my intention," she mumbles as she tries to think of a valid reason for his behavior. Nothing did come to mind, but, well, if anything the Jackson's seemed to be the secretive kind of people. "Something wrong?"

He shakes his head as he gets up. "You want hot coco? It's a bit chili."

"I actually came down for tea."

He gives her a worried look as he turns on the electric kettle. "Another nightmare?"

"No." She walks to one of the chairs and sits across where he was siting. "I just woke up."

He walks to her and places his large hand on her forehead, once he had moved her hair way from her face. "You temperature if fine. Are you having any problems? Someone giving you a hard time?"

"Everything is the same," she tells him gently.

He sighs as he gives her an ounce over. "You can speak with me. How's everything with Tom? We noticed that you aren't... normal." She merely narrows her eyes, she honestly wasn't in the mood. She had enough conversations about things not being normal to last her entire life time. James, sensing that he was crossing some sort of line, raises his hands in the air defensively. "I'm not trying to poke the bear Livy. I'm concerned."

"I know," she states simply. "I honestly don't want to speak about it."

He offers her a smile. "C'mon kiddo. Lay it out for your big bro, maybe I can help."

She takes a deep breath of air, regretting the fact that she left the bedroom. "No one can. Things aren't normal for anyone and no one can make the normal. Talking, crying or arguing won't achieve a thing... so I rather not."

"So much doom and gloom," he mumbles as the kettle signals that the water had boiled. He pulls one mug from the cupboard, yellow with the handle chipped, and quickly makes a tea for her. Once it was ready, he poured two spoons of sugar and gave it to her. "So you and Tom argued?" She gives him a pointed look. These people didn't understand the concept of not wanting to talk about it. "Hey. You shouldn't let it affect you," he states as if she had said something on the matter. "He's just confused, we all are. You've been doing fine." When instead of acknowledging his words, she kept stirring the sugar he sighed. "I mean it." She looks up to him and furrows her eyebrows. "I'm sure he was just acting... how do you kids put it? Butt hurt?"

Unable to maintain a straight face at his words, she laughs. His lips were slightly scrunched as if saying those words had left a bad taste on his mouth. "Good grief Jimmy. Looks like you ate a lemon."

He scoffs with a small smile on his lips. "Not my fault that you all talk funny." He makes a pause as his expression turns serious. "Look, I'm here for you. Promise I won't laugh to whatever is bothering you."

"I'm tired," she says suddenly. He moved his body as if he thought that she was suddenly going to get up - and he'd prevent her from doing so - and once she didn't he furrows his eyebrows. "I'm just tired Jimmy. Things are strange, all seems crazy to me and I don't know how to deal with it. It's just that. I know that I should get used to it since hell knows when everything will get back to normal... But it's still strange and I still want to..." She sighs. She almost said that she still wanted to return to her house. "I just wish that there was an easy way to deal with this. To know what the hell I'm supposed to do."

He frowns. "Look, things are strange but that's always the norm with us. We always deal with weird things, Amy is always trying to commune with spirits, Carl wanting little to nothing to do with magic but sticking with it since we're all witches... dealing with other witches is always a nightmare because they usually want you dead."

She widens her eyes and gaps. "What?"

"Not even joking," James mumbles. "You know that you're a freak to them and whenever we meet a new witch they always want to drive something through you. But then our charming personality always wins."

"Did... uh... Sheila want to kill me?"

"It wasn't... violent," he mumbles oddly. When she raises her eyebrow, he sighs. "She just told us that if you ever harmed one of hers that she would... do less than pleasant things... You were a kid when it happened, I guess that it was one of the reasons why it wasn't as bad as it could be. Things are harder when we travel. We don't nowadays but we used to." He smiles. "Point is, things are always weird."

"I thought that the point of this conversation was to make me feel better," she mutters closing her eyes. Well, it wasn't as if she hadn't expect things to be like that. However, she hadn't expected that one of them would tell her that.

He smiles as he gets up and carefully warps the newspaper around the book. "Just trying to show you that you have us. Things are weird, but we are there for you. Always."

With a smile on her lips, she mumbles the words she had heard countless times in the TV series. "Always and forever?"

He nods. "Always and forever. Now, since we're both up and we haven't been spending much time together... How about we watch a movie?"

"Okay."

"You make the popcorn and I'll grab a couple of blankets."

She ended up falling asleep in the middle of the movie and for the first time in the last week, she didn't have any sort of dreams which was definitely a pleasant change. When she woke up, the sun was already shinning and Daphne was giving the pair - James had also fallen asleep on the couch next to her - amused looks. She ushered them up the stairs as she pretended to be hurt for being left out of their sleepover. Later, during her first class of the day, Olivia would realize that it was the first time she didn't woke up and outright thought of home. She just couldn't decide if that was a good thing or not.

Even if the day started on a good note, most of the Jacksons were in a pleasant mood and no annoying conversations had taken place nor arguments had started, she quickly realized that something was off about Alex. She hadn't outright noticed, but during lunch, when they crossed paths with Stefan, as everyone greeted each other, he forcibly shook hands with Stefan. It lasted an uncomfortable five seconds and as fast he had been pressing his hand against his and violently shaking it, he dropped it before turning to her, with a smile on his lips, and asking where she wanted to have lunch ignoring the looks that Stefan, Tom, Caroline and herself were giving him.

"I don't have any clear preferences," she mumbles still trying to understand what he was up to.

He nods and turns his attention to Stefan. "You're having lunch with us?"

Stefan looked confused and she couldn't blame him. Alex was acting like a lunatic. "Uh."

Caroline looked like she had enough of his weird behavior. "What's up with you? Did you take crazy pills?"

He scoffs. "Yesterday your boyfriend told me I needed to be nicer," he sniggers. "I'm trying to do that." He looks to Stefan, who looked like he wanted to disappear into thin air. "So? You can bring your girlfriend if you want."

"I'd have to check with her," Stefan says calmly.

Tom shakes his head. "Look, don't feel obligated. I don't know what's gotten into him-"

"Why do you have to make it weird," Alex mutters narrowing his eyes. "If he wants to come he can, if he doesn't it's okay. I'm not pointing a gun to him."

"You're the one that is making this weird," Caroline points out. "I don't know-"

"I'm hungry," Olivia declares loudly making everyone quiet down. "So less chatter and more walking towards the food."

Caroline laughs as she shakes her head. "The Grill then?"

"Yeah."

Alex still looked like he wanted to say something, but thankfully Tom spoke instead. "Even if he was strange about it, you're welcome to join us Stefan and so is Elena."

"Yeah, it can be fun. Tell Elena to bring Bonnie, it's been a while since we have all been together," Caroline adds with a smile.

Stefan looked like he had given up and had now a resigned expression on his face. "I will." He pulls out his phone as the group waits for a decision - even if they were pressing him to join them. "We'll meet you guys there. She has to check on Jeremy first."

Caroline beams. "Great."

"I can't really keep up," Alex mutters as he starts walking.

Giving everyone an apologetic smile, Olivia rushes after him. "What was that?"

He scoffs and crosses his arms over his chest. "You too?"

"Don't start. We both know that something's up," she counters giving him a pointed look that made him laugh.

"There's something off about him. I was just trying to see if... look, it's stupid. Bonnie was spooked when she touched him and I wanted to see if there was something there."

She reins in the urge to gap. She couldn't decide if Alex was paranoid or really perceptive. "He passed your test?"

He shrugs. "There's still something off. We'll see."

Olivia was thankful when Caroline and Tom joined them since the issue could die out for now. She honestly didn't want to discuss the **off** thing about Stefan. First she knew that, generally speaking, witches didn't really like vampires but the Jacksons seemed to have a bigger than normal resentment. It was perfectly understandable, their father had been killed by one so she was dreading the day that they discovered that the Salvatores were vampires since she was almost sure that it couldn't, and wouldn't, end well. Especially if one considered the 'charming' personality that Damon Salvatore had.

The lunch was a bit... weird. Alex barely spoke and continued observing the younger Salvatore. He didn't relax when it was clear that whatever had frightened Bonnie no longer applied since she spoke normally with him. It made Olivia wonder if Damon had infiltrated their dinner party and if so, who had he used since Caroline had been out of the picture.

Elena and Stefan, like Olivia had seen many times on the show, were most of the time in their own bubble. There were stolen glances, plenty of smiles and secret touches - that weren't at all secret since everyone at the table was aware of what was happening. What had, somewhat, changed was the fact that Stefan seemed to be forging a friendship with Tom. They briefly discuss the coming game and, what sounded like, tactics for it. For a couple of minutes the blood in her veins froze, she had almost forgotten about Tanner's death. Hell, she didn't even thought about what she could do to... help or if she should get involved in the issue. She did not want to face Damon. She was aware that they would eventually cross paths, but the longer she could postpone it the better she'd feel.

Alex voice is what breaks her internal freak out. "Could you get me a refill Fred?" He was giving her a meaningful look. He had caught up on her spacing out and interrupted it before someone else noticed.

"Go get it yourself, she's not your maid," Caroline mutters narrowing her eyes. "You act like such a brat."

"I'm sorry, I didn't know that your name was Fred," he snaps.

"He didn't mean to treat me as his servant," Olivia mumbles knowing that he was only trying to help her out.

Caroline shakes her head with a displeased expression. "You shouldn't defend him. He always pushes his luck."

Tom sighs. "Let's not argue." He was looking to Alex when he spoke his next words, "You should get it yourself Alex."

Alex snorts. "I'm going." With a calmer demeanor, he addresses Olivia. "You want something?"

"I'm good." With that he nods and gets up.

Elena had a sad smile on her lips. "Is everything alright with him?"

As far as Olivia was aware, Elena and Alex rarely interacted. "All's the same," Tom comments. "He's just being his difficult self."

"He's just a kid," Elena mumbles. "He'll grow out of it." Everyone was aware that she wasn't speaking about Alex any longer.

Tom smiles. "Yeah, so will Jeremy." Elena shots him a thankful smile and nods.

"I wish we could fast forward, those two are asses sometimes," Caroline says before cringing. "Uh, sorry."

Elena shakes her head with a slightly forced smile. "It's okay Caroline."

"These things sometimes just... leave my lips," she justifies. "I should really think before speaking."

Olivia places her hand above hers in a comforting manner. "It's all part of Caroline Forbes charm. We wouldn't have you any other way."

Caroline grins and nods. "I love you too Libbie."

The meaningless but overall pleasant conversation resumed and the rest of the lunch went fine - Alex even stopped observing Stefan so attentively. He kept his interactions with the people to a minimum and ended up leaving earlier than the rest under the pretense he had to meet one of his friends. She didn't know if he was speaking the truth, but she was thankful that he left. He was distrustful of Stefan and she had a feeling that the more time they spent together the odds of something bad happening would only grow.

Over the course of the next couple of days it became clear that something between Alex and Stefan was brewing. Alex hostility steadily increased and during practice became regular to have him and Tyler try some of their more violent tactics on him. Not only did that made his interactions with Stefan difficult - whenever they spoke it was cold and short - but he and Tom frequently argued about it. It got to a point that Olivia feared for Alex's safety. Sure, Stefan was what she could consider a nice guy but she was sure that sooner or later he'd do something about it.

She had her eyes narrowed when he approached her after practice. She had started staying to watch them practice in case something blew out of control and if things continued, that day would come sooner than later. He raised his hands in mocked surrender. "What's gotten you in a bad mood?"

"Don't. You know full well."

He snorts. With his hands crossed around his chest, he glares. "Do I Fred? 'Cause I'm starting to think that you know something about him that you aren't sharing. What's the deal with him?"

She gaps for a bit. While she knew that Alex wasn't one to beat around the bush, she hadn't expected him to start the conversation like that. She was starting to think that she had the worst of luck. First she was stuck in the Vampire Diaries universe, with no clear way out; second she had these caring, albeit, too protective people around her (she still didn't know how to deal with that); third Alex was too perceptive or too paranoid for everyone's good because asking about Stefan couldn't mean that good things were about to happen and forth, she still had no clue how to deal with all of this. She was still trying to pretend if this was somehow a weird ass dream and it wasn't really happening, the only reason why she wasn't as careless as she could have been was the fact that she was scared that drying here (wherever here actually was) would mean that she died in her universe.

Alex coughs effectively pulling her out of her reverie. He was next to her, siting at the edge of the bench. His eyes were jumping all over her face as if by her expressions he could discover whatever she was hiding. _Worst of luck, really._

"Why are you asking?" Her question, that had been intended to stall or, if she had luck, distract him of his query, made Alex narrow his eyes.

"There's something wrong with him," he states with a harsh tone. "I wanna know if you noticed or know something." He gives her a pointed look. "I'm thinking you know something 'cause of the way you behave but I wanted to ask. Bonnie acted freaky." A shaky breath of air leaves his lips and a realization comes to him. "You know something."

It wasn't a question (it honestly sounded a lot like an accusation) but she knew she had to tell him something. "I do," she confirms. "Leave him be Liam," she mumbles as she rubs her hands on her head. She was feeling a head ace forming. Oh, she had the worst of luck.

"Why?" She raises an eyebrow. "And why aren't you telling me?"

"Liam."

He scoffs. "Look, I'm not happy that you aren't sharing whatever it is that you know. But I have to know if he's... safe."

She frowns. "I'm sure he won't do anything to us, please, just let it go."

"Whatever." He then rubs his hands together, trying to calm down. "I don't wanna argue. How about you wait for me and pay me some ice cream as a bribe?" He grins. "To smooth out my bitterness."

"Deal."

"Just let me shower, I'm smelling like something died on me." After giving her a cheeky grin, he walks away.

At first she couldn't believe her luck. She hadn't expect him to let it go that easily, not that he had, she knew that in the future some sort of issue between those two would arise but at least for now, she sincerely hoped, things would calm down. For half a second she felt grateful but then it hit her. It took her exactly ten minutes to feel stupid and two to get to the locker room. Alex would never let it go and if she hadn't provided him answers he was brave, and stupid enough, to go straight to the source. When her hands pushed the door open, they were shaking. She couldn't hear any sort of noises and at first she thought that it meant that nothing had transpired.

"Woah, Jackson! You shouldn't be here."

She widens her eyes and quickly turns her back. There were a bunch of half-naked guys looking to her like she had lost her plot. And she most definitely had. "I'm sorry."

She feels a hand on her shoulder guiding her outside. "Stop staring assholes," Tyler snaps. "Something wrong?" His tone was much gentler when he addressed her. "You look like someone died."

"I..." How was she supposed to explain to Tyler, of all people, what was happening. "Where's Liam?"

He still had a worried expression. "He and Salvatore left a bit ago. You sure your fine?"

Her panic spikes again and her entire body starts shaking. Gruesome images start appearing in her mind making Tyler's hold on her shoulder increase. She pushes out images of Alex's body maimed and scattered around as she reminded herself that it was Stefan, not Damon and definitely not blood thirsty, snarky ripper Stefan. It was Stefan, 'I want to be good' Stefan. She had to maintain a calm facade or Tyler wouldn't leave her be. And she didn't needed him to muddle up things further. "Just tell me what the hell is happening? Salvatore did something to him? Swear I'll beat him to a pulp."

"No, no," she quickly mutters. "It's that... I'm scared that Liam will start something and you know that he and Tom are already at odds," she starts babbling hopping to not only explain her weird behavior but to make him want to stay out of it. "I'm tired of the arguments and I always end up in the middle so, I want to prevent whatever that could happen. He told me something strange so when I connected the dots I came rushing-"

"Calm down," he tells her sternly. "Your brother was fine when I saw him. They were speaking sort of pleasantly when they left, I don't know where he went but I can help you look for them." She gaps making him laugh. "You look stupid Jackson, close your mouth before something flies in. Let me grab my things and we can go search. They can't be far."

They most definitely could. "I need to pee." She crosses her arms over her chest defensively when she noticed the look he was giving her. She really needed to get away from him for a bit. "I can't help it Lockwood."

He raises an eyebrow but doesn't comment. "I'll wait here."

She rushes to the bathroom and breaths out in relief when no one was there. Thanking her lucky stars - or unlucky, sometimes she couldn't decide - she pulls out a map from her bag. All of the Jackson siblings carried maps and while at first she found them incredibly paranoid and partially like her privacy was violated - they could find her at all times - she was now was somewhat glad. Their paranoia would possibly help her prevent Alex's death or at least him being severely maimed. She was also glad that yesterday had been the day she received magic from Tom because that meant that she had no need to take it from the necklace and then explain to Cassandra why was magic missing from it and in what exactly what she had used it on and lastly, she was glad that she could easily perform the spell.

She flattens the map against the seat of the toilet, trying not to think too hard about what she was doing - this situation was too bizarre for her. If anyone had ever told her that one day she'd be in a bathroom stall performing magic to find someone she'd ask them to stay off the drugs that they certainly had to be ingesting to spout such nonsense. Alas, there she was, doing a spell to find Alex. From what she had learned from the Jacksons, if she didn't have an object she could easily use her own blood to locate one them. At first she had been sceptic, she wasn't their sibling but... the times she had performed this spell under the watch of Cassandra had proved that it didn't matter, the blood belonged to their sibling and that was enough. Like on those times, she hoped that she'd be able to find Alex and that her nerves wouldn't get the best of her rendering her unable to correctly perform it.

Tyler had been somewhat right, they weren't too far. They were at the woods. Damnit, that couldn't mean that good thing were transpiring. No good things happened at the woods in this show – sure, she could count with one hand things that had happened in the woods that didn't ended up to someone dying… but still, it wasn't like it was one of those cases. She rapidly stuffs the map inside her bag and rushes out of the bathroom. Tyler was there, waiting for her and she wished that he had actually told her to deal with this alone. Sometimes she wished that he was every bit of a dick that she had always thought that he was because him trying to help her out, was really giving her more problems that she wanted or could deal with right now.

After losing precious time convincing him to part ways with her, so they could cover more ground, she runs to the forest. If Alex was alive, she would have to take up running with him in the mornings because she clearly had no stamina. Her legs were burning, like acid had been tossed to her muscles and she had only covered a pathetically small distance not to mention that her lungs were threatening to exploded. If she wanted to survive, she needed to get not only faster but also get to a point where running didn't take so much out of her.

She knew that they hadn't moved when she heard a groan off pain that she honestly hoped that didn't belong to Alex – Stefan could always heal fast, Alex, not so much. She was cursing everything known to her, including the universe, being tossed there, the stupid show, the stupid characters in the show, the Jacksons and all divine entities she knew and some she made up when she saw Stefan kneeling on the ground and Alex - who was bleeding from his lip - closing in on him with a makeshift stake. He had an absolutely predatory look on his face, by the dirt smudge in his jeans it was clear that some sort of stumble had taken place… On that instance she realized that she had never expected to find him like this with the upper hand. All of this time she had thought that instead of seeing Stefan pant and whimper, making an effort to get up, she would have found him. She had been fully aware that he was aggressive – the football practices she saw this week not only attested it, but also showed her that he was way stronger than she had ever deemed possible – but still… it was like she was seeing an completely new side of him and she couldn't decide if it scared her or reassured her that he'd be alright.

Later at night she'd wonder how her voice sounded so stable and strong when she, herself, was so tired and shaky in that moment. "Stop." She didn't comprehend what was happening, but Alex fell down and started groaning. "What do you two think you're doing?!" She was thankful for the adrenaline pumping in her veins that were making everything... buzz. She was sure that in normal conditions, her legs would have given out by now and's she be on the ground panting. "Attacking each other is not acceptable. We'll have a beef, I promise you that."

Alex had gotten up suddenly and after casting a wary glance at Stefan, he rushed to her. He quickly warped his arms around her. "Stay with me Fred."

She was feeling a bit nauseous. "No more shenanigans," she mumbles as she notices that her vision was tunneling and blotches were randomly appearing. "Oh, I'm going to faint."

"No, no," he says frenetically. "You gotta stay with me." He was using his sleeve to wipe out something from her face.

She could faintly hear Stefan's voice. "What's happening?"

"None of your concern," Alex spats. "If you attack us, I swear that we won't rest till your dead. There will be no place for you."

She groans, or attempts to. "No more," she tried to say but it ended up sounding 'Numor'. She felt movement and closed her eyes before she got sick. Last thing she needed was to cover herself in vomit.

"She used too much?"

It became clear to Alex that Olivia could no longer understand what was going on. His silly sister had clearly used every last tidbit of magic in her when she pushed him and the vampire to the ground. He'd have a couple of words with her when she was safe about stupid heroics. "Yeah." His problem with the guy had to be postponed. He had to get him out of here fast so he could coax her into taking magic from him.

He was still trying to think of what he should say when Stefan sighed. "How can I help?"

He gives him bemused look. "You want to help?"

"She has no part in our... problem. Her heart beat is really faint and I." He takes a deep breath of air. "I rather if she didn't die because she used too much power to stop us."

"Get me a water and tell this to no one."

He raises an eyebrow. "What about Tom?"

He had the perfect argument to stop that. He smirks, eh, at least he could still enjoy the little things. "Wanna explain to him how you came to learn we're witches? I don't think so. Just bring me water and a towel. I'll need to clean her up."

"Okay."

Once the vampire sped away, he lies his sister on the ground. He gently shakes her till she opened her eyes and after a couple more of gentle nudges she started to siphon from him. He had never given much thought to how she did her _thing_ but it became clear that whenever she was out of it, it hurt a lot more. He also felt like he was about to fall down next to her when it stopped. She was still bleeding and he could feel some sort of weird energy around her that made the hairs in his arm raise - like there was too much static energy in the air - but he hoped that she was stable. This further seemed to prove that having no magic in her could lead to her death, despite whatever she claimed.

He was torn between feeling guilty for causing this mess, he had been aware that if she got involved it would end well, and angry that she prevented him from ending the vampire. Stefan hadn't even said that he had nothing to do with the deaths and when he was questioned he became... dodgy. Now, why the fuck was his sister protecting a killer? Why was she hiding stuff? They really need to have a serious conversation. What had been surprising - he couldn't still believe it - was the fact that the vampire had wanted to help. When she fell, he thought that they were done for it. He thought that Stefan would jump them and rip out their throats.

His phone suddenly rings and after glancing to her apparently sleeping figure, he answers the phone, "What?"

"The hell is wrong with you man? Your sister and I are looking for you, now she doesn't answer her fucking phone and I... Where are you?"

He furrows his eyebrows and looks to his sister as if she was in a condition to explain why Tyler was calling. "What?" His tone was less aggressive this time, it was simply confused.

Tyler sighs. "I don't know. She barges in the locker room looking like someone was dying then gets all weird when I say you left with Salvatore... Look, tell me you didn't do shit. Normally, I'd be all on in but Olivia was scared."

While he appreciated that Tyler was trying to help out his sister... he knew the guy well enough to be suspicious. "What's the deal Lockwood? You trying to fuck her?"

"What the fuck man? You lost your mind?" By Tyler's tone he relaxes. The guy sounded genuinely offended. "I'm not trying to start any shit. Look, I was worried and we're friends. We protect each other, it's always been like that. I'm not trying to get in her pants."

It was a bad day when someone like Tyler Lockwood could make you feel like an asshole. "Sorry. I didn't do anything with Salvatore."

"Good." Tyler sighs. "Guess I'll start looking for her to share the news. If you find her give me a call, okay?"

"Sure and thanks man."

"Don't mention it." With that Tyler disconnects the phone.

He was placing the phone in his pocket when he heard Stefan. "Here." Stefan extends his hand without approaching them.

While Alex could appreciate the fact that he was keeping his distance, he wasn't about to get up. "Closer. I'm not going to leave her."

Stefan nods and, as if he didn't want to startle him, he approaches him slowly. "Is that normal?" When Alex raises his eyebrows Stefan sighs. "I'll be the first to admit that I don't know much about witches."

"You want me to believe that you're worried?" Instead of looking to Stefan's face to see how his comment was received, he pours half of the contents of bottle of water in the cloth that Stefan had brought and wipes out the blood of her nose. He couldn't leave any traces of what had transpired or their siblings would get suspicious.

He hears Stefan sigh. "Your sister did nothing to me. One of the reasons I'm not dead now is because she showed up. If you want, I can go and we forget this ever happened."

Alex sniggers. "No chance in hell. We're going to wait till she wakes up and we'll see what we do." He glances at him and sardonically smiles. "Clear up the schedule, you aren't going anywhere, even if I have to restrain you myself."

Stefan shakes his head. "You have anger issues? I'd like to know what I have done to warrant this. Now that you know I'm a vampire I almost understand but... why before?"

He tells him the same thing he had told his sister, "There was something off about you and let me tell you that ignoring the general population and going for Elena didn't earn you many friends."

Stefan's expression hardens. "I didn't steal her from Matt."

"It's not about that. I don't give a fuck if you're dating her or not... if you start to use her as a blood bag that's a different story." With a hardened expression and ready to use magic if Stefan attacked, he looks to him. "You harm someone and your name is handed to the council. Bet they'll have fun." When Olivia stirs, Alex's expression shifts to one of concern. "Fred?"

"My head hurts," she mumbles as she opens her eyes. "Bloody hell this wasn't a nightmare?"

"No." He wasn't even a bit amused. "What the fuck were you thinking?"

She narrows her eyes. "What were **you** thinking? Told you to leave him alone Liam."

He gently pulls her into a sitting position. Even if he was being careful in how he moved her, his tone of voice was harsh and contrasted with his movements that were slow and well thought out. "Why? You forgot to tell me why!"

She looks to Stefan first and then to him. "He hasn't killed anyone here. He isn't the animal attack on the news." Both of the males were surprised. "Now, you both cocked this up. Who attacked who?"

"I did," Alex says with no once of shame. "Even if he isn't the one harming people... no vampire is innocent."

Olivia didn't even want to admit how right Alex was. Stefan had a large tally of bodies but... he wasn't up to his old habits at the moment. "Sure, he must have done bad things but he isn't doing them now. So, just trust me."

"Don't hide shit from me," he mutters as he tries to let go of the anger he was feeling. "If he bites-"

"I won't," Stefan readily promises. "I won't harm any of you if I'm not attacked... if so it will be to defend myself."

Alex nods. "Fair enough. We leave you be and you leave us be."

"You know that it isn't that easy," Olivia reasons with a gentle tone. "Stefan is with Elena and he's also on the team. Our paths will cross and you acting like a dick to him won't help in anything."

"You say he's fine and I give you the benefit of the doubt," Alex states. "But no way in hell I'm going to become the BFF of a vampire. I don't trust him and he sure as hell doesn't trust us."

Olivia felt like she really had the worst of luck. "Let us be civil then. We don't have to be friends but we don't have to stay in bad terms," Stefan tries to persuade him. "Things will be easier for everyone."

"We'll see," he mutters instead of agreeing. "We should go. A while longer and our sisters will send a search party."

Olivia nods as she gets up. "I'm... sorry Stefan. My brother-"

"Is right here." Alex narrows his eyes. "You don't have to apologize on my behalf especially when I don't feel sorry."

Stefan smiles apologetically with his eyes locked in hers. She was sure that he was thinking about Damon. "It's okay. I hope you get better."

"Enough with this shit," Alex mutters aggravated. "I want us to leave. I want him to leave." Stefan nods before speeding away. "You ain't getting close to him. I don't trust him."

Olivia groans. "Don't make me regret telling you Liam. I really need you to trust me or this won't end well. So please, for the love of all that's holy, trust me."

Whereas the walk home was silent - both were angry with each other for obvious reasons - once they got home, they pretended as if what had happened in the woods had never happened. They smiled and joked as they normally would, their siblings teased him when he blamed football for the cut on his lips and things were the picture of a calm evening with family. When it was time for bed, Alex went with her to the room to have the conversation they needed. Clearly they had to set some boundaries or they'd have issues similar to these in the future.

Alex wanted her to tell him absolutely everything she knew - including the name of the bastard that was causing all the news and trail of dead bodied. He wanted Olivia to trust him and to simply tell him what the fuck was going on. He wanted to understand why had she protected the vampire and why wasn't she simply outing them to the council. She was clearly playing with fire and if their older siblings caught up ton what they were doing, shit would most definitely hit the fan.

In the other hand, Olivia wanted Alex to trust her. If she didn't tell him everything was that foreknowledge could muddle things even more. And, as today had proved, if he didn't agree with her vision he could clearly take matters into his hands and bad things could happen. The fight in the woods could change the plot so much that she was scared of learning the implications. What if Stefan made them known to Damon, knowing or unknowingly? She was sure that it wouldn't go as well as it had with Stefan. Someone would most definitely end up dead! And, how had he just reached the conclusion that Stefan was a vampire in the first place? She was honestly starting to regret the fact that she had told him anything about what was transpiring in the background.

She observes Alex doing the silencing spell and once he looked to her, she speaks, "How did you found out?"

"His ring." When she furrows her eyebrows he snickers, "Besides being tacky as fuck, I came across a spell. Daylight ring." His hands were clenched into fists. "You always knew?"

She nods. "Yeah. You should have left it alone Liam. I didn't want to out us as witches."

"Why didn't you tell me?" His tone was steadily raising. "Why don't you trust me? Why half-truths Fred? Why the fuck don't you just tell me?!"

Her demeanor now matched his. "There is stuff I can't tell you. Not only because I don't know how you'd react but because if the people involved notice that there's something off about... you can die. We can all die! I'm not doing this to spite you. It's not just about trust. I don't know what the bloody hell I'm doing or how to deal with this... Can't you get that? I'm way in over my head!"

As if a button had been pressed inside of him, all traces of anger disappear from him. He was now frowning and looking worriedly to her. "I know that this shit is hard... But, I'm here. You gotta trust me. I can't help if you don't trust me."

"What if you pull another of this stunts?" She looks to the ground and starts fidgeting with her fingers. "We got lucky today... You were lucky that it was Stefan and he's always trying to be a good guy or this could have gone ass-backwards." She tentatively looks up. "Promise you won't ever again corner a vampire in the woods. It's beyond stupid."

He grabs both of her hands stopping her movements. He gently squeezes her hand to comfort her. "I'm not happy but I promise that I won't go Buffy on you, okay?" She smiles and nods. "In return... just speak with me Fred. I really don't know what you're planning if you don't tell me."

"Okay. I'll think about it."

He smiles before letting go of her. "I say we deserve rest... We'll speak later, okay?"

"Yeah. I'm rather tired." She bites down her lip. "I'm sorry for whatever it's worth. I didn't think it would get like this."

"I know." With that he blows up the candle. "Good night maggot."

"Night."

Had Olivia been a naive girl, she would think that this was the last she would hear of it. However, she knew that one day they would revisit this topic. Alex would always want to know everything and she would never be able to tell him - if anything, today had proved that they had different visions on the matter, well, it wasn't like he knew the entire story... but she had a feeling that even so, his visions would differ. Also, she was sure that at some point she'd be approached by Stefan. She didn't remember every last detail, but she was sure she had said weird things when she was trying to prevent their fight - he surely had questions - and even if that wasn't the case, Stefan would most likely tell her to keep what he was a secret. But that was tomorrows problem, at this instance she just wanted to sleep and erase the day's events from her mind.

Stefan had approached her sooner than she had expected. She didn't want to think that he had been lurking around but as soon as she was alone, he appeared in front of her. To the normal observer nothing would seem wrong. Stefan and Olivia had spoken in the past and neither seemed to be tense, sure, when she was her she squealed but... she merely looked surprised. They also had smiles on their faces - she was sure that very few would notice that both of the smiles were for the benefit of the people around them. To someone that knew her, really knew her, they'd immediately point out that the girl was the furthest from relaxed as possible. Her back was too straight at her shoulders made rigid movements whenever she breathed. Stefan also seemed uncomfortable when one looked closely. That could easily be overlooked, the guy has is eyebrows and forehead perpetually scrunched. Still, she didn't flee and he didn't seem like he'd pull her somewhere by force.

"Good morning Olivia. Would you mind having a conversation with me?"

The tense smile seemed to be stuck on her face. "Of course. I think we shouldn't go far in case someone searches for us," she adds. Both were aware that if Alex noticed their absence he wouldn't be pleased.

He nods as he gestures forward. "Thank you. I just want to clear up some things."

"I expected as much," she admits as she avoids looking to him. She had predicted this but she honestly hoped that he wasn't trying to get her o some secluded place to threaten her.

With her observation, a silence settles. It wasn't comfortable by any accounts but it was clear that no one knew what to say - it was a serious matter and both were thinking just how they should deal with this, leaving no room to exchange fake pleasantries. Once they were near the football field, that only had a handful of people lingering, Stefan points to the benches.

They both sit down and after a rather awkward laugh from Stefan, the tension slowly eases off. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you." When she looked at him, he seemed genuine. There was an apologetic expression on his face. "Yesterday was really strange... and I just wanted to make sure that it will stay between us."

Did he just wanted to make sure that she wouldn't blab his secret to Elena? "It will. You aren't the only one that has a... second nature." She lowers her tone, "Elena has no idea that I'm a witch."

He looked relieved when he nodded his head. She didn't know if it was because she told him she wouldn't mention it to Elena or if he had leverage over her. "A special kind of witch I assume." He was looking much more seriously to her than she deemed possible or acceptable. His eyes seemed like they were trying to pierce through her till he learned whatever it was that she knew. "You seemed like you knew... things."

Olivia was aware that there was no point in lying. Heck, lying to Stefan could be dangerous but it wasn't like she wanted to tell him the complete story. She rubs her hands on her legs trying to calm down. "Yeah."

"You don't have to be nervous. I won't harm you," he assures her. "I just want to understand, that's all. If you don't want to or can't share something, I promise that I won't press. I just." He sighs. "It was like you knew me." He was giving her an odd look. "Like you knew who I was."

"I know that you aren't the one behind the killings, I also know that you know... who is," she mumbles as she looks to the ground. She knew that she was playing a dangerous game. "I just want to survive this Stefan." And she didn't just mean this encounter, or a future encounter with his brother. She just wanted to survive the whole ordeal unscathed even if it was really improbable.

For a while he doesn't say anything making the tension return to her. A bunch of crazy thoughts were running in her mind. What if he thought that she had been spying them (he and Damon)? What if he deemed her a risk? "Everyone wants to survive." He gently nudges her shoulder with his and offers a smile that was meant to make her relax. It didn't but she appreciated the effort. "I might not know much about witches but knowing things isn't... normal."

"Not unheard off," she counters. "Look, your secrets are safe. I haven't discussed what I know about you with anyone. I just don't want people to get hurt, you understand that, don't you?"

"I do." He opens his mouth and rapidly closes it. It looked like he couldn't decide what he wanted to say. "Can we be honest with each other?" She reluctantly nods, not understanding what he was trying to achieve. Much like she suspected he was doing, there would be things that both would lie about. Trying to clear the air didn't equal to spilling secrets. She'd lie if she needed like she assumed that he would. "Do you know... much?"

A frenzied laugh leaves her lips startling him. "For my safety, I'm sure I do. Stefan I'm a firm believer that everyone muddles up things sometimes. No one is perfect and I try my hardest not to judge people without knowing the full story. I screw up sometimes and I don't like when I'm judged for it, so I try to return the courtesy. Whatever I know, won't change what I think about you." Since he wasn't really concerned about what she thought but rather what she could say to his girlfriend, she adds, "Nor will it make me spread any sort of rumors about you. I honestly rather pretend that I don't have any information you haven't volunteered."

"Do you know about Damon?" When she widens her eyes - she hadn't expected him to outright say his name - he sighed. "Oh." He had a sad smile on his lips and was giving her what she could only describe as 'I really pity you' sort of look. "He's not... I... He can helped," he ends up settling with.

She takes a few deep breaths of air trying to settle her frantic heartbeat. "That's why my... family... doesn't know about him. I just rather if we didn't crossed paths. I'm sure you can understand my concerns."

"I won't let my brother harm your family," he says rather solemnly. "I'm trying to stop him from harming more people. I just don't know how to do it," he admits. "Damon is... difficult."

On that moment she felt an urge to tell Stefan exactly what was Damon trying to achieve. How he just wanted to find Katherine - who wasn't there - and unveil all of the future. Stefan not only seemed really genuine but his clear concern for Damon did really made her want to help him. But, even with his best of intentions, Stefan did make a mess of things frequently... and, she just couldn't put her life and fate in his hands. She didn't trust him that much. Sure, she believed that he wouldn't kill her for no reason... but Stefan had his own alliances and her best interests weren't, certainly, that up in his list despite what he could tell himself and her. Even if she would like to make things easier on him – and who knew, maybe she'd find a way to make his path less rocky – this wasn't the time nor was telling him anything was the way to go on about it.

"I know," she said instead. "Let me give you an advice. You should also worry about your family," she says cryptically. "Not just Damon."

He looked like he wanted to ask but was aware that she wouldn't elaborate. "I will," he mumbles. He then had a self-decrepitating smile on his lips. "You probably think I'm an idiot."

"Not at all," she truthfully says. "The situation is hard. You love your brother, there's nothing wrong with that." She was about to remind him that Damon's atonement wasn't in his hands when she realized that it wasn't her place to do so. "Look, this whole thing is weird. I'm sure you don't want to speak with me about these-"

"No, no," he rapidly interrupts her. "I admit that this really freaks me out." There was a tentative smile on his lips. "I fell... exposed and I don't really know you. You're a stranger that knows things about me that I'm sure I rather if no one knew. I just... I don't even know where I'm going with this," he states with an embarrassed demeanor.

"Trust me, you're not the only one at your wits end," she tells him conspiratorially. "You really want my honest opinion?" he nods. "Alright. You sometimes forget that his actions aren't on you." When he opened his mouth, to most likely tell her that she didn't understand, she raises her hand. "I get it. You feel responsible." That made him widen his eyes and close his lips in a somewhat tense line. "His path is his to walk. My grams used to tell me that god only helps those that help themselves." For a few tense seconds she wanted to slap herself, but once she remembered that it wasn't like he knew the Jackson's life story, she relaxed. "He has to want help first. You understand?"

"I do," he mumbles. "You really know?"

"I don't know exactly what you're referring to but as you've said. I know more than you're comfortable with... and like I told you, we can pretend I really don't know a thing."

He starches the base of his neck. "I... uh... how do you know?"

She closes her eyes knowing that she would eventually regret her words. "I've seen it... but much like you, I really rather if we didn't speak about it."

"I don't understand how any of it works…. But it's fair. We won't speak about that. Thank you Olivia." He gets up and smiles. "I won't keep you any longer."

She nods as she mimics his movements. "Uh." She was taking a risk, but she was at her wits end. "You should keep an eye on him." Maybe it would prevent Damon from attacking Tanner just to prove he was 'bad'.

If he understood that she was hinting at something that would happen, he didn't comment or reacted. "I will. I'd tell you not to worry... but you... know... us," he finishes awkwardly.

"I know you'll do your best."

He had a knowing smile. "My best sometimes isn't enough."

She would have laughed if the matter wasn't as serious. "I know. Have a good day Stefan."

"You too Olivia." When she turns her back to start walking, he grabs her arm letting her go almost immediately. "Uh, maybe you'd like my number... in case you have a run in with my brother?"

If this had been anyone else, she would have thought that they less than honorable intentions... but it was Stefan. "Sure." They quickly trade phones and type their numbers. "Thank you."

"After yesterday and almost." He coughs as if he realized that the topic wasn't at all appropriated. "Uh, it's the least I can do."

She shakes her head. "It isn't and Liam admitted to having caused the issue. You don't owe me."

"I do, more than you must realize," he declares giving her an odd look. "Thank you for helping me yesterday Olivia."

"Yesterday should have never happened," she tells him truthfully. "Let's hope that worst things don't come to pass because of it."

The self-decrepitating smile was back. "You shouldn't have said that. Sounded… ominous."

She laughs nervously. "I figured that thinking and saying it out loud wouldn't make much of a difference. Now if you excuse me, I really want to rush away and pretend I didn't say anything ominous."


	5. 005

_._

 _So this is what you meant_

 _When you said that you were spent_

 _And now it's time to build from the bottom of the pit, right to the top_

 _Don't hold back_

 _[…]_

 _It's time to begin, isn't it?_

 _I get a little bit bigger but then I'll admit_

 _I'm just the same as I was_

 _Now don't you understand_

 _I'm never changing who I am_

 _So this is where you fell_

 _And I am left to sell_

 _The path to heaven runs through miles of clouded hell right to the top_

 _Don't look back_

 _Turning to rags and giving the commodities a rain check_

It's time – Imagine Dragons

 **A.N.: Happy New Year! I hope that you guys enjoy this one because I did definitely enjoyed writing it. We see Olivia develop and plenty of other stuff that I won't spoil :)**

 **Thanks for all those that subscribed, favorited and commented. You guys rock my socks off.**

* * *

Olivia was hunched over her desk as she flips through one of the grimoires that Alex had given her days prior. She wasn't using them for what he intended but instead to try to see if she could resolve her latest issue: Tanner. After everything that had happened today and yesterday had been resolved - the awkward conversation with Stefan, Alex and her being slightly at odds, the headaches and discomfort from all of the above - she realized that she hadn't come with a game plan to deal with Tanner's death. First, she in no away in form endanger her life to save his or anyone else's for that matter; second the guy had to leave and third, she had two days to accomplish it - and a few more hours if she didn't sleep today. Now, if she was a vampire, she could easily compel him to go somewhere else before he even crossed paths with Damon but she wasn't. However, she was a witch and in theory she could perform a spell to do something similar but that couldn't be easy - at least finding the damned spell.

When she was skimming the pages trying to find words as compulsion, control and mind, she began to wonder how in the Queen's good name this family had so many spell books. That wasn't normal as far as she knew... She was aware that she should concern herself with that - at some point - it wasn't like she knew a whole lot about the Jackson's origins. Thus far none of the more prominent witch linages had been mentioned tied to theirs but she had knowledge of at least 10 Grimoires in the house - she was currently in the possession of three whereas Alex had two, the rest where either with Cass, Daphne or James. And those hadn't been written by the Jackson's siblings (those ten plus the eight - if everyone had their own, till this day she had only seen Cassandra's - would make a grand total of 18 if there weren't others that she didn't have knowledge about). Also, they weren't old as if they had been passed down from generation to generation, correction, they didn't look that old. Sure, a couple of pages were smudged but it hadn't been written in the past century... so what was up with that?

Alas, she had other things to worry about and whatever was the reason for having so many witch books lying around wasn't the priority. She needed to find something to make Tanner go away, alive, so that Alaric could come to the city. Sure, he could always find another reason besides a teaching position but the fact that he was their History Teacher did have its point. Like, not drawing more suspicion from Damon, when he was possessed by Klaus and he even influenced - being the role he played big or small up for debate - Jeremy in the beginning with his attitude change. And she also really, really wanted to do something about Tanner.

Before coming to this world she had always thought of herself as a good person. She abided laws, never strayed too far from her path and for the most part, tried to be a reasonably good person without being a doormat. She always thought of herself as a person that would try to prevent someone's death if she could... now she wasn't so sure and it did made her feel all sorts of guilt. She had left Vicky alone - after a failed rescue attempt which would most likely lead to her death like it happened in the show - to be tossed around between vampires and she could have done something. She could have stayed with the girl to dissuade Damon from doing shit. But, then again, Damon was Damon and Damon on the first season did whatever the fuck he wanted and, despite everything, Olivia really didn't want to die. So, she discovered that she wasn't selfless or the kind of person that would give her life to save another... maybe, well, maybe she would but not if that person didn't really mean a lot to her. Perhaps if instead of Vicki it had been Caroline she would have done something, bloody hell, she seriously hoped that she would have acted... because Caroline was amazing and she didn't want her blonde friend to go through what she had in the show with Damon and whatnot. Saving Tanner, as long as she didn't came in contact with Damon (he still scared the piss out of her) was a way to ease up the way she felt. Sure, it wasn't the most pure reason but, she assumed, that it was as good as anything else. She almost laughed at that thought, if the _Scooby_ gang had heard this she would have definitely suffer some sort of repercussion - probably in the form of some rather angry rant.

So far, she hadn't found anything remotely useful for the task at hands. If she wanted five ways to light a candle or control a flame - or another element really - she would have found the right grimoire... It made her wonder why had, whoever written it, had been so obsessed with element. It was definitely making her really anxious and starting to think that maybe she would be powerless to prevent Tanner's death. It wasn't like she liked the guy, he was an ass - all of the interactions she had with him had left her wishing she could punch him - but no one deserved to be drained in a parking lot. Okay, maybe a few people deserved - four or five came to mind - but she couldn't be that person... it made her feel so conflicted.

The sudden knocks on her door make her jump out of the chair as if she was trying to escape her skin. Thinking that maybe it was Alex for round two of yesterday's argument - that hadn't been really concluded - or because he had found out about her chat with Stefan, she sighs.

"Come in."

It wasn't Alex or Tom. It was Daphne and Daphne was peering curiously at her. "Homework?"

It was too late to hide the grimoires - that would only make the older Jackson question her and she didn't want that. She shakes her head. "Already finished." And that was by no means a lie. Daphne was now looking at her with her eyebrows furrowed. "Uh... trying to find something to help with... memories."

Daphne sighs and for a moment she fear that she'd hear some sort of lecture. Instead, and looking rather dejectedly, the woman walks to the bed. "We've gone through them all. Is that why you were acting weird during the dinner?"

She didn't remember acting out so she chose not to comment. Sure, she hadn't been speaking because she was too busy trying to come up with something - anything - to try to save Tanner's hide - and now, she had a Jackson butting in her business. She'd like to say that she was surprised or even that it didn't happened often enough to be annoying. Both were untrue. "I know, I just wanted to check... I... don't know, I thought that maybe it would make sense," she says instead of starting an argument. First she couldn't say the truth and she couldn't even say the lie that Alex believed - that she was going through them because she **had visions**. She hoped that at this the older sibling would scold her and then be off - not that it was ever easy dealing with them when they were butting in.

"You need closure," Daphne mumbles gently giving her 'you poor girl' look. "Things aren't going to magically return to where they were, trust me we tried everything we knew... But I get it, you want to double check." She nods weakly, if anything she was committing to the lie. Good grief, if she didn't stop lying so much she'd give everyone rope enough to hang herself. "There's nothing in there about that. We would never let you guys come to contact with dangerous stuff."

Even if it was debatable (five ways of starting a fire with their minds sounded dangerous enough) Olivia felt like she should have predicted it. The family was clearly secretive and protective, they wouldn't leave any sort of spell that would allow teenagers to control someone's mind. "Now that you say that, sounds so obvious."

Daphne offers her a small smile. "Okay, how about you come with me to my room and I'll let you go through my grimoire. Everything we tried was there, I'll even let you flip it so you can see we didn't miss anything."

She wasn't sure that there was going to be something useful there... but at least she would have tried. Also, she was in to deep to pull off now, one way or another - whatever the reason - she would have to go with Daphne. "Okay."

"I'll be there the entire time-"

"Obviously," Olivia interrupts rolling her eyes.

"And not taking notes," Daphne finished. Which meant that she would have to either try to memories the spell if she found it or try to get it later. "Deal?"

"Deal. Thanks."

Daphne waves her off as she gets up. "You've been on good behavior." She flashes her a sad smile. "The best I've seen when you aren't bickering with us so... I'm cutting you some slack."

She quietly follows Daphne to her bedroom to find it exactly like it had been all the other times she had been in there - mainly when she had laundry duties. The walls were white - very much like in her bedroom - being the difference that there was no decorations hanging. The room was also a bit bigger than hers - she always wondered how did they managed to find a house big enough for everyone to have their own rooms and how had they paid for it, because it couldn't be cheap - and had more furniture. Like always, there wasn't a thing out of place and that was already something that Olivia expected. Both Cassandra and Daphne were rather organized and neat.

Daphne points to the bed as she walks to the small bookshelf she had. She pulls a rather inconspicuous hardcover book. It looked like a plain organizer - even if a somewhat beat up one - it wasn't as big as the ones back in her bedroom. Daphne sits next to her and hands her the item. Olivia flips through the pages with her attention divided: half paying attention to what was written and half looking for the same words she had been previously looking. Whenever she remained in the same page long, Daphne would explain what the ritual entailed and how they thought it could have helped her. They had done far more than she had suspected, and she had recognized the several rituals that they did with (or was **on** more accurate?) her when she got there. Hell, if she wasn't aware that they only wish her good things she'd freak out - not that she wasn't, she was rather spooked that they had done so many things behind her back.

She was starting to lose hope that there was anything there - she was half way through the section Daphne had pointed out and nothing - when she suddenly came across a teared up page (it was the only thing that didn't seem like it had been written by Daphne) that said coercion spell. She immediately paused - if she was in her right state of mind or if she merely had more control over herself, she wouldn't have reacted so physically, her momentary freeze was bound to bring up **something** \- Daphne sighs as she places her hand over hers.

"We didn't do anything to you," she declares with a very serious tone of voice. "No did someone else."

Olivia looks dumbly at her. She was cursing in her mind but her only option was now to go along with it. "How do you know?"

Daphne removes the book from her hands - and the torn page after tucking it inside at some random section - and flips the pages. When she finds whatever it was she was looking for she hands Olivia the book. "There are ways to reverse it and this only affects humans. We really don't know what you did-"

Olivia immediately scoffs, clenching the book. "I didn't do anything."

"I'm not lecturing you," Daphne reasons with a tired look. "But you did, you simply don't remember it anymore. We've gone through everything you had access but didn't find anything that could cause this." She suddenly stops. "Doesn't matter now. The point is, we tried everything that we could think of but something did damage your mind. We don't know what nor how to fix it and we do have a pretty extensive library," she adds. "Hell if I know what you were trying to do."

"I didn't," Olivia insists.

Daphne grimaces. "Ivy the other option would be that someone did this to you. We didn't and neither did the other witches in town," she points out calmly. "I know you didn't mean to cause this with whatever you did..."

"Can we not talk about this?" Olivia pinches the bridge of her nose. "I really want to stop having these arguments, I feel like we're all just repeating ourselves."

"James told me you had a chat with him." _Of course he did_ , Olivia thinks with a roll of eyes. "Hear me out. We know that you're confused and probably scared, but you got us. So, don't be so closed off... we're here for each other, okay?" Olivia nods halfheartedly. "Now, you want to go through the spells with me or you want to call it a day?"

Olivia was tired and the conversation had left her cranky. At least she had found the spell. "I'm making a tea... I don't think I'll discover anything new," she adds quietly.

"I think hell's freezing over." When Olivia looks at Daphne the older woman laughs. "I never thought that I'd miss you making noise. Just cheer up, sometimes looking at you makes me depressed."

Olivia shakes her head. "I'm pretending you didn't say that... I'm making a tea," she states as she gets up. "Thank you for showing me your grimoire," she says pleasantly.

Daphne nods as she closes it. She gets up from the bed at the same time Olivia does. "My door is always open, you can always come here."

A sudden feeling of mischief washes through Olivia. _How nice of her_. "I'll keep that in mind." And well, it was nice - even if the woman hadn't meant it in that way - to know that when she returned to get a look at the spell it would be done with Daphne's invitation/ approval.

The main reason why she didn't run to her room to plot how she'd go on about to get that spell was because she had to know when wouldn't be anyone at home. She certainly wouldn't be able to get inside of the room unnoticed with Jacksons traipsing around and she really didn't need more things to fix. And she had just the tool to know when would the coast be clear, the whiteboard in the kitchen where Cassandra insisted to document everyone's activities and chores. The tea was merely a decoy in case she got caught in the kitchen because if there ever was a family that would question her about her interest in a basic chore/activity board it was the Jacksons. Halfway through, she realized that spending time in this universe and with these people was making her somewhat paranoid and she couldn't decide if that was good or not.

Looking at the whiteboard - that was even color coded - she realized that the best time would be tomorrow at lunch. She just had to 'forget' something in case she ran into someone. Feeling and hoping that things went according to plan, she returns to the room enjoying the feeling of the hot cup against her hands. Maybe things were getting better and soon this mess would be dealt with. Of course that that put a damper on her spirits. Soon she was going to have to deal with something else and then something else, until she either went back, died or left the town to a secluded mountain. Shaking the suddenly gloomy thoughts she returns to the bed.

The day started off as it usual. Olivia spent at least five minutes trying to convince herself to stop doing this every morning. It was clear that she had to do something to go to her house - she wouldn't magically wake up there - and going through the disappointment of waking up 'here' instead of 'there' was simply making her bitter. She dreaded the mornings and the nights and it had to stop, she couldn't go on about this. She had to... cope. She was here now and maybe with time, and access to more things and knowledgeable people, she would find a way to return and for now... she would have to really decided (and commit to that decision) of what should she do with her foreknowledge. Maybe if she started planning things instead of leaving things for the last minute, everything would go more smoothly - or at least save her some future disappointment. She had to decide when to intervene and when not to and prepare for the times she would.

With that, she jumped out of the bed, gave herself a small pep talk whilst she was looking at the mirror - what made her feel beyond silly - that mostly consisted of: you can do this, you're not going to die, you're going to make things better (hopefully), you can **really** do this and you're here now so you better enjoy the ride. She was in one of her favorite shows and even if she didn't want to go there in the first place - since it was really dangerous for a human to be walking around with so many **big** ** _bads_** there at some points - she had an opportunity. Plus, she had never been one to shy away from a challenge. She could totally do this... she hoped.

With renewed vigor and a plan for the day - and a subsequent plan to test the spell before using it on Tanner - she dressed herself. She had a plan, she was feeling optimistic and like she was getting somewhere – or, at the very least, like she had some sort of purpose. So today she'd triumph against whatever the world threw at her.

She didn't know if it was because she was eager for lunch hour but time seemed to go more slowly. She couldn't help but to huff and puff almost constantly and tap her feet impatiently whenever she was in class. That sort of behavior made Tom and Caroline shot her curious looks during the morning.

"You okay?"

She smiles at Caroline. "Yeah, the day is just dragging itself, innit?"

Caroline flashes her an amused smile. "High school in a nutshell. Still, you seem... on edge?"

"I forgot my English assignment," she tells Caroline figuring that it was better if she already set up her disappearance for lunch. "I rather if I didn't have to go home for it."

"We can go with you," Care offers.

 _This always backfires._ "Or you could have lunch with your boyfriend without a third wheel," she counters with a smile. "You guys are always with me and... I love you to pieces, but I really need a break from all the love."

Caroline slaps her arm halfheartedly. "We don't mind that, you know that." When Olivia gives her a pointed look, Caroline giggles. "Okay, okay. It would be nice to have lunch with him alone for a change. But I still need my BFF."

"I'm going home not away from the country," she tells her. "I'm not going anywhere." She gave herself a mental pat in the back when she didn't sound bitter, maybe the weird pep talk in the mirror did wonders.

Caroline grins. "I'd track you down," she promises. "You'd never be able to hide from me."

"I don't doubt it. You have this uncanny ability to always find me," Olivia says half mockingly and half seriously.

"Good. You've been warned." After a few seconds, both of the girls laugh at their silliness.

When Tom arrives she glances at the pair and smiles. "Why are you two laughing?"

Caroline automatically pecks his lips. "Libbie is going home during lunch." Tom immediately raises an eyebrow as he looks at her, prompting a nod on her part. "She forgot her homework."

"You gotta be more careful," he chides her.

"You should be thanking me. You're having lunch with your girlfriend, alone."

Caroline rolls her eyes. "It's like we've been trying to get you to leave us."

"Which we didn't. The three of us always spent a lot of time together," Tom continues.

Those two sometimes were hard work. "Why can't you appreciate the little things? I'm not saying that I feel unwelcomed just that you should enjoy. Have a romantic lunch or whatever it is that you do when I'm not around. Get a good snog, hold hands... do coupley stuff, outdoors family appropriate coupley stuff," She teases. "All those things that are completely and utterly inappropriate in my presence."

"You're terrible," Tom mumbles with an embarrassed expression

"You guys are certainly lively," Elena comments as she approaches the group with Stefan on tow.

For a moment Olivia's teasing smile flatters when Stefan and she look at each other. "Libbie's just telling me to do family appropriate couple stuff and I'm not one to pass up on that," Caroline jokes as she gently nudges Olivia noticing that the girl had quietened down.

Elena looks at Olivia with an expression that clearly stated that this wasn't the first time this had happened. "Oh, family appropriated?" Elena teases.

Shaking out the weirdness, she nods with forced enthusiasm. She couldn't act weird and make people question her. "Of course, we don't want to traumatized the kids or make them ask uncomfortable questions to their parents. Nor do I want to be related to someone or best friends with the sort of people that takes the innocence straight out of a kid."

"Olivia Jackson, looking out for family values since this morning," Caroline declares with a grin. "Cassandra would be proud."

"Of course, I aim to be an example of proper manners," she says doing her best impression of a British butler. "The paragon of moral and values that our society sorely needs. The youngsters need to be reminded how act with civilized company."

Caroline, Tom and Elena chuckle at her antics. "You certainly are in a good mood," Stefan comments.

Elena smiles. "If you were here longer, you'd see the irony of her words."

"How dare you?" Olivia places a hand over her chest pretending to be heartbroken and offended. "I have been nothing but a good example for you all."

"Of course," Caroline complies with a teasing smile. "Like that time on Halloween that you picked a fight with a kid over candies. I think you stole candy from him."

Didn't exactly sound like something Olivia would do, but hell if she knew what the other had been up to. "That was a simple misunderstanding, I would never do something so vulgar. Now, I must be off before you try to sully my good name." Holding her head high in a fairly good impression of someone conceited, she strutted way smiling as she heard Caroline giggle and Tom laughing.

When finally the time to go home came, Olivia practically sprigged out of her chair and borderline ran to the door. She knew she had to act inconspicuously, but she could barely contain herself. Also, the faster she did this lesser would be the chance of her getting caught. She chuckled manically when she entered the house and no one was there and took no time walking and entering Daphne's bedroom. Much to her surprise, the book had been exactly where she had seen Daphne place it and she quickly found the page she was looking for - she made a mental note of coming here again to get other spells - not to waste time, she rapidly took a couple of pictures of the page and emailed it to herself so she could delete it from the phone. Even if this far things had progressed well, she was still afraid of getting caught. She stored the book and observed the room to see if something had come out of place then she left the room and walked to her to retrieve the _forgotten_ notebook.

Since she was aware that she was unlucky, she knew that things had gone too well and she was starting to wonder just what would the universe through at her when she stumbled into Cass. The older woman immediately looked at her with suspicion.

"Why are you home?"

She raises her hand making the notebook visible and controls her face so she didn't laugh. Oh, being paranoid paid! "Forgot this. I have English after lunch-"

"I know." The older woman sighs. "Nothing wrong? You aren't sick?"

She frowns. "No. I'm alright." Before Cassandra had a change to keep questioning her, she raises an eyebrow. "How about you?"

Cassandra looks mildly surprised at her before sighing tiredly. "It's being one of those days. I just want them to catch the vampire-"

That alarmed her. Had Damon done something or was this still about the things he had done on the past weeks. "Something happened?"

"The corpses are piling up." She sighs again. "Look, nothing you should worry about. We're safe," Cass promises. "If the vampire comes close to us, I'll make it regret ever setting foot here." By her tone Cassandra was dead serious. "You want to have lunch with me?"

"Uh."

Cass raises her hands. "No arguments. I just wanna know what you've been up to."

She didn't felt like she had much of a choice. "Sure. Here?"

"Not in the mood to cook. Just give me a second, I came to get something." Without providing an explanation, Cassandra rushed upstairs. When she returned, Olivia was still in the same spot, the only difference was that she had stored the book. "Ready?"

"Yeah."

The lunch wasn't as awkward as Olivia had predicted. They had gone to The Grill (unsurprisingly, sometimes she thought that it was the only place where people ate in this city) and sat outside. The conversation was kept causal: there were no chats about Olivia's feelings, no inquiries about her, Tom and Alex's dynamics or anything of the sort, no questions about vampires or other supernatural events. They mainly spoke about school and the upcoming game in which Alex and Tom would play. Cassandra wouldn't attend, Olivia learned, but Daphne would be there in her stead with a recording camera - she didn't know if this was good news or not and suddenly, saving Tanner became more important. She definitely didn't want Daphne or any of her siblings stumbling into Damon. Once they finished their meal, Cassandra dropped her off at school just in time for the next class.

Very much like she had done all week, Olivia after school remained at the benches observing practice. After Alex's and Stefan's tumble in the woods on the previous day, she hoped that everything would be more calm and till some extent, she was correct. Neither Alex nor Tyler seemed to be making passes to purposely tackle him - she wondered if Tanner place them always in opposing teams because he wanted to see Stefan get the wind knocked out of him - but, it physical contact existed she could see that Alex put all of his strength behind it. For the most part, Stefan didn't look like he was going to snap Alex in two. She had hopped, really hoped that it would calm down... but she should have predicted it. Alex had a bit of a nasty temper.

"Do you know how long it will take him to... let it go?"

She almost falls down the benches when she heard Stefan's voice so close. When Tanner switched the teams, placing them in the same she started doing her homework since Alex wouldn't tackle him now. "Bloody hell," she exclaims as she places her hand over her heart. She could feel the loud thumps on her palm. "Don't appear out of thin air," she adds in a much lower tone.

He smiles sheepishly. "It wasn't my intention." She didn't know whether to believe him or not. "Breath in and out," he instructs her calmly. "Like me."

She laughs. "I'm alright," she says after a bit. "You startled me."

"Sorry."

She shakes her head, dismissing the event. "About Liam... I really don't know." She smiles apologetically. "He's got a bit of a..."

"Anger issue?"

She reluctantly nods. "I'm sure that once he realizes that you aren't snacking on children in hidden corners that he'll calm down."

Stefan gives her a 'don't say those things so casually' face before stating, "I really don't know. Just wish he stopped tackling me." She rolls her eyes. She was ready to tell him not to be a baby since he could heal faster that she could say bananas when she grew confused. Why was he speaking to her? "Olivia?"

She blinks her eyes. "Uh, apart from inquiring about Liam's apparent need to tackling whenever you have the ball." She pauses. "That sounds so disturbing... I don't even... Doesn't matter. Did you need something?"

"No."

For a few uncomfortable seconds no one says anything. While Olivia was nervously glancing, trying to spot Alex - she really didn't need him catching her and Stefan speaking and blow up a storm - meaning that she really wanted him to... go... Stefan looked like he wanted to say something but didn't know how to go on about it. He didn't have his questions answered the other day if anything he left with more questions than when the conversation started.

"I wanted to get to know you better," he announces suddenly making Olivia look startled and maybe even a bit scared to him. The girl was proving to be slightly stranger than he had first anticipated.

"Why?"

He didn't know if he should appreciate her bluntness or chide her. However, he figured that in her shoes, he'd act (and ask) the same. "You know a lot about me... I even don't know how much and the only things I know about you are your name, that you have a big family, two brothers that attend this school," he starts listing. "One of which has a -" she raises her hand stopping him.

She sighs. This sounded like a disaster in the making. "I understand," she mumbles a bit awkwardly. "I really rather not speak about what I know... half the time I feel like I'm going to end up dead because of it." He was taken back but the sudden seriousness and conviction of her words. Just what the hell had the girl seen? "You honestly make me a little nervous," she adds sighing when a sudden look of offense flashes in his face. "It's not you, per say. It's... uh... your relatives. I feel that the odds of stumbling in the piece of dancing sunshine that is Damon when you're around are high... which means that the odds of me dying are also high."

"He's not one to... frequent high schools," Stefan says with a hint of a smile.

"I don't know, he seems like the sort to enjoy snacking on a cheerleader," she counters with a raises eyebrow.

He sighs. "I thought that this was going to be easy." He flashes her a smile. "I'm a little rusty on how to make friends but I'm pretty sure that this isn't going according to what I remember."

Despite herself she smiles. "Sure, if we forget about your fangs, my family's tendency to chant spells, your brother murdering habits or mine's rage... this would be really easy. A walk in the park."

"Nothing like a complicated situation to help people bond," he states.

She nods. She still didn't **get** why he was making an effort. "Can't I just promise that I won't reveal your deepest secrets, like we are the best of girl friends, and we let the chips fall where they may?"

"I don't know," he tells her. "I haven't had a good sleepover in centuries. And people rave about my popcorn making skills, you are missing out here girl friend."

She looks to him dumb folded making him smile. Did...? Was he joking? "Sure, let's talk about crushes while we braid each other's hair."

"Fine by me. A friend of mine told me I was excellent with hair... not so good as when it comes to paint nails," he shares as if he was telling her his most shameful secret.

She snorts. "Stefan this is getting weird."

"A bit," he agrees with a smile. "You started it though."

She raises an eyebrow. "Aren't you too **old** to use that argument?"

"Fair enough." He suddenly stops and his nose slightly twitches. "You're safe for now. We'll resume this at a later date... Be ready because next time I'll bring a list of why you should totally be my friend."

She shakes her head guessing that he probably heard Alex coming over. "Thirty or less... and I want them with cursive handwrite. Oh, bring charts too."

He laughs. "I'll see you later Olivia."

He leaves before she had a change of saying something. He just, flashes away. God, she missed the time where he kept the appearance of being human because if he kept popping out of thin air she was sure that her heart would explode. Then again, if she was correct and Alex was coming, she wanted him to be as fast as he could. She didn't need to witness an argument that could easily escalate to 'I'm trying to kill you' kind of thing.

She was storing her things when her brother, accompanied by Tyler, came to get her. Apparently they were going to the Grill and Alex invited her to join them. She decided - she really wasn't in the mood to watch them play pool or whatever it was that they were planning, she had her own plots to devise - stating that she was a bit tired and simply wanted to go home, eat, shower and sleep. Unsurprisingly, Alex offered to drop her home and even if she declined (twice) he and Tyler followed her. They included her (or did their best to) in their silly, often offensive to passersby, conversation and when she got home - and they finally left - she was a bit surprised at Tyler's behavior. They didn't exchange their usual offenses and he had been, over all, a rather nice guy. She chalked it up for frightening him in the previous day. Because if not in a million years she could see herself becoming friends with Tyler from season one or the ' _I want to kill a baby_ 'Tyler. Maybe she was being harsh and, with the right influence he'd never get to the 'baby killing' urges in the first place.

It had been hard for her not to rush to her bedroom and finally see the spell she had gotten her hands on. However, she couldn't. She had to go on about her business like she usually did or the Jacksons would most likely butt in her business, so that meant that she had to do her chores - today she had laundry and helping out in the kitchen - wait for dinner and then she'd be free to see the spell and if it was something she could use - for a few minutes, dread filled her veins as she imagined that she had all that work for nothing.

"Hey," Daphne calls her out making Olivia reprimand herself. "What's the matter Ivy?"

She does her best to control her expression - she couldn't see worried or annoyed because she didn't want to give away nothing. So, she furrows her eyebrows and tilts her head, doing her best to seem confused. "Hum?"

"You were spacing out," Daphne points out.

"I was thinking."

"Everything alright?"

She rolls her eyes. "Yes, it was homework. I remembered that I had to write a 10 pages essay," she states with a calm tone hoping that Daphne would leave her be.

Daphne offers her a smile. "The tragedy of being a teenagers: homework."

Olivia laughs and shakes her head. "I thought that it was parental authority."

"Oh, yes," Daphne agrees. "Chores too."

"Yes, so it's more like tragedies," Olivia concludes. "Oh! I completely forgot about internal turmoil and general angst."

Daphne laughs lightly as she shakes her head. "Guess we had luck. None of you are mopey, angsty teens... and you don't act out that bad."

Feeling that her words were a bit out of place - it was a weird that she was complimenting them (Olivia, Tom and Alex) - Olivia raises an eyebrow. "What brought this on?"

"I spent the afternoon with Jenna," Daphne answers with a sigh. "Jeremy is really acting out and she doesn't know what to do... Bad grades, leaving the house without warning anyone and substance abuse." She turns slightly to Olivia and grimaces. "Sure, you guys do bad things, but it was never that bad."

It was improbable that in a family like this someone got to the point that Jeremy had reached even if it was because that there was always someone breathing down your neck. Also, everyone was held accountable for their actions and there were obligations and responsibilities - sure, they came in the form of chores but it was good to have structure. "I'm sure he'll get his act together."

"I know but I do hope that he doesn't do anything that will mark his life forever because he will, eventually, regret it," Daphne states.

"Jeremy Gilbert: a cautionary tale for teenagers that don't want to screw up."

Daphne looks at her with her eyebrows furrowed. Olivia thought that she had said something horribly wrong that would prompt the older Jackson to scold her... or even a rant of how her words weren't appreciated but after a twitch of lips, Daphne laughed. "Guess so." Daphne grimaces. "She's also to blame, you know."

Olivia raises an eyebrow. She wasn't expecting to hear something like that, from everything she had gathered Daphne and Jenna were friends. "An adult saying that another adult is messing up? I think that I went to an alternate dimension where equality exists," she trails off.

Daphne rolls her eyes as she shakes her head. "She's clearly grasping at straws and the kid really doesn't fear the consequences for his actions. She told him stories of how she had been a stoner herself. I don't know what she was thinking."

Olivia laughs. When she watched the show, she never understood why Jeremy had that much lenience for acting out. "Wanted him to know she could relate? Or even make pot uncool?"

"I doubt that saying 'Hey, I used to smoke pot' would make him stop smoking pot."

"I don't know. It would make me want to stop smoking pot... even if it was to stop these conversations," Olivia teases making Daphne snort.

On that moment James enters the house. It seemed like he had heard part of the conversation because he was looking weirdly to them. "For a second I thought that this was the wrong house but no. You two are my sisters."

He walks to Olivia and plants a kiss on her forehead as Daphne explains, "We were speaking about Jeremy."

James grimaces. "That kid is a wreck." He glances at the whiteboard before looking at Daphne. "Cass working in late?"

"That vampire business is putting everyone at edge," Daphne mumbles as she stealthily glances at Olivia. "So, who's making dinner?"

"I think you just volunteered yourself," James says with a smile. "I recommend Ivy as a sous chef."

Olivia snorts. "I'll start charging."

"I can work with that," James mumbles with a mischievous grin. "2 cents per hour?"

"This is child labor," she says as she tries her hardest not to smile. "I demand 4 cents!"

Daphne rolls her eyes with a small smile. "Compromise people. 3 cents." She then walks to them. "Now shake it off and I'll draft the contract."

James extends his hand and so does Olivia. "There. I expect my wages at the end of the month."

"I'm glad that you are in a good mood," James comments. "Now, I'll finish this up while you two go make the man of the house some food."

Daphne twats him in the shoulder. "We all know that Cass, the man of the house, is at work."

Olivia blinks twice before burst in laughter. "God and they say that the teenagers are the silly ones."

"Hey!" James crosses his arms over his chest. "I am young at heart."

Daphne rolls her eyes. "Let's go before it gets worse." After giving him a look she smiles. "I'm just glad that Carl isn't here to make this worse."

The rest of the evening went in that fashion. When Tom and Alex finally got home they found Olivia and James bickering in the kitchen regarding cupcakes they had made. The two teenagers didn't really understand what was going on, Olivia was telling him not to go near the food while he was offering an increase of pay. Not only was that weird by itself but also they hadn't grown used to see their sister silent - or at least not swatting their older brother's hands away when he tried to touch food... then there was Daphne, who was telling them that these things had to go through her first so she could put them in the contract.

"Okay, what is going on?" Alex looks to Olivia.

She smiles before answering him, "I'm a paid worker now."

"5 cents increase of pay?" Daphne looks at James, who nods.

"I'm even willing to give you another cent increase and TV perks. You can choose the next family movie if you give me one cupcake," he tries to convince her. "What do you say? 6 cents and a movie?"

Alex glances at Tom, who was smiling, before settling on Olivia. "You've been drinking something?"

"No." She waves off her hand.

Daphne smiles. "Oh, let them be. We're in a good mood."

"You guys should pay us since we did all of your chores," James adds.

"Oh, this is creeping me out," Alex mumbles as Olivia walks to him.

She pats his arm. "Here blueberry muffin." She extends one to him and another to Tom.

Tom smiles as he accepts the treat. "You cooked?"

"She did thus the increase of pay," Daphne states.

James had managed to get her hands on one of the cupcakes and was now smiling. "Oh, you're going to have kitchen duties more often."

"Oh, enough." Daphne looks to them. "Go wash up so we can have dinner. Cass' working in late."

With the cupcake still in his hands, Alex gives another glance to his family before shaking his head and walking away. Even if it was weird, he was sort of happy that everyone was in a good mood. If certainty beat having everyone arguing or tense, like it had been the norm on the past months.

Since Tom and Alex where the ones that ended up in charge of cleaning up - Daphne stated that it was only fair since they had done the rest - Olivia bid everyone a good night and went to her bedroom. The previous good mood was starting to drown in the anxiety that appeared. She feared that since she hadn't read the spell maybe it wouldn't help her case... Her hands were slightly trembling as she quickly typed in her password and when she finally managed to open up the picture she sighed in relief. It was simple enough, she was going to need something from the target and to say a incantation and then the person would do whatever it was she said, then she just had to burn the object - those five ways of lighting a fire now sounded useful. Now, she just had to practice the incantation, test it out before going to Tanner. Getting something of his wouldn't be easy, she was sure, while she could steal a hair from a random person to test it out with Tanner things wouldn't so straight forward - maybe she could get her hands on his hat?

That night, maybe it was because of what she was planning or even the anxiety, her dreams where restless. She saw countless of grimoires scattered around the floor as she tried to find something in them. She would frenetically go through pages feeling scared of being caught and when it seemed that she finally found whatever it was that she was looking, she jolted awake.

With a sigh - followed by a groan when she realized that it was five thirty in the morning - she decided to remain up instead of going back to sleep. She lit a candle to do the silencing spell as Alex had taught her and practiced the incantation a few more times. She was scared that saying the wrong thing would have a bad effect - like death or breaking someone's mind - instead of simply failing. She also wondered why they had the spell on their possession in the first place. However, that wasn't important at the moment, what mattered was mastering the incantation - intoning it like she did with the other spells that she had been taught and enunciating everything clearly.

When she finally reached the school - she had left early than Tom and Alex so they didn't caught her plans - she glanced around trying to find someone to test it. She suppressed the feelings of how was this wrong - she honestly felt like some sort of villain lurking around for a victim - because the end game was saving someone. Sure, her intentions were good in the end but she was certain that there were plenty of people around - mainly the ones composed of the core cast - that would disagree with what she had planned, or rather, with how she was choosing to execute it. She wasn't them and she was working with what she had, so she pushed that from her mind and approached one of her classmates.

"Hey."

The guy looked a bit startled. Once he sees that it was her, just her, he furrows his eyebrows with a small smile. "Hey. You need something?"

She did but she couldn't really say 'just one of your hairs would do just fine'. With a friendly smile she nods her head. "Where did you buy that coat?" The guy gave her a confused expression. "Tom's birthday is coming up and I think that he'd like one of those." It was by no means a good lie but she had never been excellent at lying... at the very least she didn't look completely strange.

The guy visibly relaxes. "Oh, I ordered it online. I can give you the site... Word of warning, order it two sizes larger."

She nods, trying to maintain the facade. "Can I ask something weird?" She gives him a bashful smile. The guy nods his head with some hesitancy. "Uh, could I touch it? I want to check if the fabric is as smooth as it looks."

The guy smiles, like he was founding her endearing - at least now that the weird thing wasn't that weird. "Of course." He extends his arm to her. "Who'd knew that my jacket would be such a conversation starter?"

She grins as she runs her hands on his sleeve. Now, she just had to reach the lapel and pull one of his hairs. "It's a great jacket," she states with the grin in its place. "Pretty sure that Tom will like it." She was not, but the guy didn't need to know that. "And sorry if this was too weird."

"Nah, don't sweat it," the guy tells her. "So, what do you think?"

He had allowed his arm to fall and she knew that her window to get one of his hairs was closing down. So, praying that it would work, she reaches for his collar and tugs a couple of hair _accidentally_ making him flinch. "Sorry." She cringes as she quickly places the hand that had a couple of hairs inside of her pocket. "I'm an idiot."

The guy shakes his head. "It was an accident," he mumbles as he rubs his head.

"I'm going go before I embarrass myself further." She casts her eyes down, as if she was mortified, and walks away.

"It's okay," the guy says as he rushes to her. She looks up confused why he didn't just let her go. He had a smile on his lips. "I'm not pissed."

"Thank you." She forces a smile to hide her annoyance. "Oh, there's Tom and Care. Could you keep this between us? I want to surprise him."

"You got it Olivia."

It looked like he was going to say something else, but she didn't give him a chance. "Thank you! See you later," she says loudly as she walks to Tom and Caroline.

Now she just needed to find something to make him do so she knew it worked. Something harmless, like dancing in the middle of the hall? Uh, maybe that would severely affect his reputation... maybe tie something to his arm? Or blinking a whole lot? Or speak in a different language... but that couldn't work. What if he needed to know the language in the first place? Oh, she didn't have to do something that big... maybe she just had to make him do something whenever he saw her, like a sign or something... Something unusual so no smiles or anything - the guy could randomly smile when he saw her so it had to be something he wouldn't normally do but not as big as to alert other people.

"Libbie!" She blinks and looks to Care. Care looked worried and somewhat annoyed. "You totally spaced out on us..."

She smiles sheepishly. "Sorry. What were you saying?"

Caroline sighs. "Are you going to the Grill with us after practice?"

Olivia had no idea how things would work - like if the spell worked still she have to get something of Tanner - so she didn't know if she'd have time to go. "I'll answer to that later," she tells her blonde friend that immediately raises an eyebrow. "Uh, I got to go to the library and-"

"Can't you do that later?" Caroline insists. "C'mon, it's going to be fun."

"It's been a while since we did something after school," Tom adds.

Olivia internally groans. Oh, she hated when they teamed up on her. "I'm not saying that I'm not going... I just have to finish this up first. If all goes well, I'll meet you there."

Caroline sighs. "You've been acting so weird. Since when do you care so much about homework?"

"Care," Olivia whines. "Please."

"Fine!" The blonde mutters exasperated. "But as my BFF, you owe me some quality time."

With a roll of eyes she mumbles, "Of course. Now if you two excuse me, I'm going to pee."

And without giving them time to say anything else, she dashes away having in mind the perfect thing. There were a couple of people inside the bathroom so she waits till everyone leaves. It looked like the bathroom had become her go to place to do weird things and she hoped that this didn't become a thing in the future - god, her life was so weird. Alas, this wasn't like a movie, so she had to wait almost twenty minutes to have privacy and it was clear that she only had privacy because the bell had rung.

She pulls out a candle from her bag and ignites it using spell number three - it merely needed her to focus hard enough and visualize the flames. Once it was lit, she chants the spell holding the several hairs on her hand and picturing the guy she had stolen them from. A couple of seconds later she says what she wished he'd do once he saw her - or rather the next two times he saw her; he was to raise his hand and his left hand, close it in a fist and bump it against his chest - now she just had to wait.

She should have predicted that this was going to attract some attention, because what she made him do was by no means normal. The next time she saw the guy, after a poorly planned escape from Tom and Caroline - she didn't want them to witness - Alex stumbled into her. She was looking at the guy that was doing exactly as she had pictured right in the middle of the hall. She was cringing because she might have as well made him break into dance by the looks he was getting.

"Was that for you?"

She looks to Alex cursing her luck as she reluctantly waves back to the guy as if she was terribly confused. "I think so," she mumbles with what she hoped that it was an uncertain tone. After the fiasco with Stefan, she didn't want to involve Alex - plus, this one was rather dangerous so it was for the best he didn't participate. "Wonder what that was..."

"If he does something tell me." He glares to the guy that was now looking confused and rushing away. "Anyway, want to come to the Grill this afternoon?"

"Care already invited me," she states. "I'm going to stop by the library and go there."

"Nerd," he teases with a smile. "See you at lunch then. Later maggot."

"Later."

At least it had worked - she regretted making him do that weird salutation and she still had to witness it one more time - now she just had to make a plan of how she'd get something of Tanner's. Maybe during practice she could swing by his office because she definitely couldn't pull the stunt she had this morning and pluck a few of his hairs out.

She had tried to avoid the guy so she could catch him when they were both alone because she really didn't need to have someone wondering about it. However, she had what she was starting to consider notoriously bad luck, she ran into the guy when she was with Caroline. Caroline obviously picked up and started questioning and Olivia pulled the same act she had played with Alex - like she had absolutely no idea of what was that and that the guy had probably smoked something. If she were a better person she would feel worse than she was, on the other hand, this had been done to save a life so she didn't allow herself to feel diabolical. She'd save that for a time she did something truly bad.

The matter was settled when Caroline declared that the weirdo probably had a crush on her. Olivia was quick to change the subject to the outing that they had planned for this afternoon - she claimed that she'd drop by the library now so that she could join them. The lie worked as she intended and she was free to go to Tanner's office.

When she got to the office she felt incredibly foolish, she had gone there as if leaving doors open was the norm. The door was locked and there was no way - at least that she was aware - to just enter. There was no window, not that she'd climb a building and she wasn't going to waste magic to force someone to give her a key to it. She had to preserve what she had to do the spell and deal with whatever complications that could arise – also, she couldn't rouse suspicion from her _loving and extremely paranoid_ family.

Decided to not let this completely ruin her plans, she goes to the parking lot - maybe he'd forgotten the door open. That was also unsuccessful. She was having some sort of melt down, wondering how in god's good name she was supposed to get something of Tanner's when her last idea appeared. Okay, so she couldn't get her hands on something from either his office or his car, but Tanner was at the field training the guys. So, that was going to be her last attempt. It was way more risky than the others, but, it wasn't like she had any other ideas. Plus, betting on accidents, like open doors, had been silly. This was not a movie and there were no forces conspiring to make her life any easier.

When she got there she considered that maybe her shitty luck wasn't that bad. On one of the benches was Tanner's coat unattended. Paying attention to Tanner and the team, she quickly opens her bag - thanking the heavens that it was big - and slowly walks to it. Since there was a vampire currently on the field and she had no clue about how good he actually heard stuff, or even if a rapid heartbeat would make him look at her, she tries to think of other stuff besides the fact that she was committing theft. God, it only took four months for her to become a deviant... Admittedly, having seen the series more than once, she was aware that stealing a mere jacket wouldn't even rank the top fifty things a person could do wrong here. Hell, she was pretty sure that by the end of her stay she will have raked up a list of less than honorable things she'll have to do in order to stay alive that will make her shudder. Things that she was pretty sure that would make her grandparents feel disappointment. Things that would make her feel even worse of a person than she already felt.

She had just managed to stuff the jacket on her bag when Tanner realized that she was there. "Do you need something Miss Jackson?"

"No," she mumbles startled. At least he hadn't caught her in the act. "Just watching my-"

"This is practice not counseling, I'm not here to listen to you. Go to the benches and don't distract anyone," he mutters making her question why on hell was she going through the trouble of saving him. "C'mon people, try to suck less!"

* * *

She was in the crowd with Daphne and James watching Alex and Tom. Things were definitely different and not just because Tanner wasn't going to die - she had made it in a way that after this speech he'd leave town under the guise of a family emergency and never return - but Elena was still a cheerleader. She didn't know if that was going to impact or change anything major in the future events or even why exactly Elena was still there. What had happened to change that? Was it because Caroline hadn't been under the influence of Damon?

She had done all that she could and now she wasn't going to leave James and Daphne's side because she really didn't want to accidentally stumble into Damon. Of course that that particular plan is foiled almost right away when she notices that Tyler was advancing at a rapid speed towards Jeremy. She had completely forgotten about that and she was debating whether to do something or not when Jeremy threw the first punch and Alex started advancing in their direction.

"Bloody hell," she mutters as she walks there before this evolved to a full scale brawl. "Knock it off," she yells when Alex is tossed to the side by Jeremy when he tried to break off the fight.

Alex doesn't pay attention to the guy he had accidentally hit and focus on Jeremy. "I'm trying to stop this asshole," Alex mutters with his eyes narrowed. "But maybe you deserve a good pounding."

"You're just a dick like him," Jeremy says angrily as he straighten ups and advances to Tyler. "You need your friends help."

"I'm going to end you Gilbert," Tyler growls.

One of the guys that had been previously sitting next to Jeremy bumps against Alex when he tries to get close. Alex merely smirks. "Oh, that's it." And punches the guy straight in the face.

She warps her hand around Alex's wrist before he could do more damage. "Stop it Liam!" He punches the guy one last time and lets him fall to the ground. He was panting as he looked at her as if he was completely out of control. "Breath," she instructs him trying to maintain a calm tone. Jeremy's and Tyler's brawl was forgotten and it seem like it would go down like it had on the show, her priority was to make sure that Alex wouldn't do anything stupid. "In and out." He seemed like he was calming down but when the guy that he had knocked down got up, groaning in pain, he snarled and kicked him in the legs making him fall. "Liam, please," she mumbles as she grabs his arm. "Stop it."

"He was going to start something," he mutters.

"What do were you thinking," Daphne mumbles as she finally reaches them. She does both of them a quick scan before turning to the other two. "Show's over kids, go away," she says in her best stern voice.

James sighs. "No fights, we had this conversation," he tells him as he twits his head. "You gotta control your temper."

Alex swats his hands away. "I'm fine. Go bother someone else."

"We're having a conversation when we get home," Daphne told him. "You can't act like this."

Olivia sighs. "This doesn't help," she states looking at the older siblings. "Go check Jeremy, he was bleeding." She turns to Alex. "Let's walk it off?"

"Anything to get away."

With his hand firmly holding hers, they leave. When Tom tries to approach them, Alex speeds up making Olivia raise her hand and shake her head. Maybe anger issues wasn't enough to describe what was going on, he looked as rabid as a wild beast. Almost as if he lost complete and total control.

Alex stops once they were at a distance from all the confusion. "You're gonna lecture me?"

Olivia sighs. "No, I'm aware that you're going to hear enough about that so I won't add."

He snorts. "Dead on."

"Hey." She bumps her hip against his and smiles. "You were trying to break the fight... you just got sidetracked."

He laughs. "Doubt that it will cut the lecture short."

"It won't," she says. Her gaze falls to his hands and she gently picks one of his hands. "You're hurt?"

"Had worse in the gym," he answers her honestly. "Don't know what the hell that guy's issue was... I really wasn't trying to start something," he tells her. By his expression Olivia knew that he was being truthful and that he wanted her to believe him.

Olivia nods, she was fully aware of that since she had witnessed most of it. "I know. I'll try to tell them that. I'm almost sure that it won't work but, hey, it might."

He shakes his head. "It's not. But thanks."

"Now, you got a game to win," she declares with an encouraging smile. "Maybe they'll forget all about it."

"Oh, I'm never that lucky," he remarks. "But if you tell me we're going to win, I'll believe you."

"I'm sure that the worst part of the night is over." She really, really hoped so.

They both returned to where James and Daphne were. The older siblings looked at her, making her nod with a small smile on her lips trying to convey that everything was better. Alex doesn't give them much attention, walking to the team after apologizing for his behavior.

"You know what happened?"

She did, hell, she even knew why this had started in the first place. But she couldn't really divulge that. She knew things that she had no way of knowing since it had happened behind the scenes. "Tyler and Jeremy were fighting. Liam tried to break it off but got shoved, I think he hit the guy he was fighting with... and you pretty much saw the rest. When the guy bumped Liam, he snapped." James sighs and rubs his head. "He **was** trying to break it off."

"Don't worry, we'll take that into consideration," James tells her.

"Let's look for seats," Daphne says with a tired tone, however, James doesn't walk with them right away.

"I think I'll grab us a drink. A soda for you?" He was looking to Olivia who shakes her head.

"Water is fine," she answers.

"You shouldn't have gone there," Daphne states after a couple of seconds of silence. "One of them could have hit you... even if Alex would have never hurt you, accidents happen."

Olivia snorts. She should have seen it coming. "And if I didn't, the guy would probably have a broken nose. Liam calmed down because I was there."

"I give you that," Daphne concedes. "But did you stop to think what would have happened if someone harmed you by accident? I promise you that Alex would have lost it completely."

Olivia looks at the ground knowing that she had a point. "I had to do something... I didn't want him to end up hurt."

"You are way more fragile than him," Daphne reminds her giving her a meaningful look. "So, don't do this, okay?"

She knew she was lying, but she said the words all the same, "Okay." One would have to physically prevent her from interfering if Alex was in danger.

The rest of the night was better. Daphne and James didn't speak about the fight nor had any other about what she had done – she was sure that Daphne wasn't the only with the opinion that she had acted foolishly. Right before the game started a teacher appeared and warned the team that Tanner had left due to a family emergency. It was clear that no one really liked the guy. The teacher's voice was monotone, as if he didn't care, and the guys on the team merely muttered that now they had no coach. And things progressed, the guy remained there speaking with the team and to her (mild) surprise, they did manage to win the game.

The game must have been so good - she still didn't understand a thing about American Football - that James was over the moon and convinced Daphne to allow the 'kids' to celebrate with the rest of the team - and if Alex was lucky, it was good enough for them to forget what had happened. Heck, he even hugged both of them a couple of times looking like the proud older brother – that, perhaps, had one too many drinks.

Feeling like she had really won something, and not because the school's team had won, she joined Alex, Tom and Caroline in celebrations that mostly consisted of everyone doing really, really loud noises. Olivia was ecstatic, she hadn't seen Damon, Tanner hadn't died and she really felt like she could definitely handle this. This was what she considered the second success in this world, the first being that Damon and Caroline hadn't crossed paths. Even if Tanner was a jackass, not hearing the loud sirens that had announced his death (or even seeing Matt freaking out) did leave a pleasant taste in her mouth.

"So, I don't have the list I promised you." Stefan extends her a closed bottle of beer. " **But** I bring a gift."

She was taking a pause from the celebrations. Even if she was happy with how the night had turned, all the jumping, howling and randomly shouting had tired her. When Tom and Caroline started to make out, she excused herself and sat nearby as she observed the festivities. Once she saw Stefan she looked to the crowd of people trying to spot her brothers - mainly Alex - but they seemed to be busy so she wasn't expecting any interruptions. Tom was dancing with Caroline now, looking like the personification of a couple in love, while Alex was drinking with a few of his team mates.

She laughs as she turns her attention to him. "How nice of you. Usually people bribe people when they mess up," she told him as he opened the bottle to hand her. She accepts it before thanking him and taking a sip.

He seemed like he had one for himself and once he opened it, he clinked it against hers. "Told you I was rusty." By his good mood she wondered if Damon had appeared at all. "But I'll keep it in mind."

"I've heard that you were fundamental in today's win," She relayed what she had heard Tyler say to her brother - more like muttered with another choice of words that weren't nearly as pleasant. "Congratulations."

Stefan bends his head in acknowledgement. "Why thank you. Your brother?"

"Tyler, Liam agreed though," she adds.

Stefan sighs. "Is he okay? I noticed that he also got in a fight..."

"You know that he's a tough one," Olivia reminds him.

Stefan grimaces. "I might be rusty but even I know that friends don't bring up... **that** sort of thing up."

"You looking at this all wrong," she whispers. With all the noise it was impossible to someone overhear her words. "If he got away in one piece from you, I'm pretty sure he could handle a normal teenager." It a much normal tone she adds, "If anything it was a compliment." She then smiles when she notices Elena walking to them. She gets up and dusts her jeans. "Thank you for the beer."

"There you are," Elena tells him sweetly. When she notices Olivia she frowns. She had a worried look on her face. "Are you alright? You were also in the middle of that stupid fight."

"I'm mint," Olivia replies giving the brunet a smile. "Now, I'm going to leave you two lovebirds and remember, only family appropriate couple stuff."

Elena laughs and shakes her head. "I'll keep that in mind."

"Have a good night Olivia."

The feelings of victory wouldn't last if Olivia was aware of what had taken place in the other part of the city. Since Damon hadn't killed Tanner in a fit of rage in an attempt to prove to Stefan that he had, by no means, a shred of humanity in him, he had gotten in a fight with his brother before disappearing. His rage by no means had been sated and instead of leaving one body in his trail, he left several. The first of which had been a man with tanned skin, brown eyes and dark hair that was wearing a red jacket and had been trying to leave the city in a hurry.


	6. 006

_._

 _Feels like I'm falling, into a world_

 _Into a world I can't control_

 _I hear it calling_

 _Down in my soul_

 _Gripping my bones_

 _It won't let go_

 _Wake me up_

 _Won't you wake me up?_

 _Caught in a bad dream_

Bad Dream - Ruelle

 **A.N.: I'd like to thank every single one of the people that read, subscribed and revied thus far :)** **As always, feel free to share your thought. Not only do they make my day but it often makes me update faster.**

* * *

Olivia pulls another drink from the trays that were circulating at the party making the total count, thus far, of four glasses that she had consumed since her arrival. Drinking was quite possibly the stupidest decision she could make, she was well aware, but she had to calm down her frenzied nerves before she made a mess of things and one of the vampires lurking in the room noticed - hell, she didn't give a damn if Stefan noticed but _Damon_ was a completely different story. She didn't even want to be here but it hadn't been like she was given much of a choice. Even if she could have said no to her rather eager blonde friend that had invaded her bedroom early in the morning to prepare - and boy it was hard to say no to Caroline - Cassandra would have dragged her there. The whole family was attending the stupid event.

It had crossed her mind to fake an illness - hell, she'd catch an illness just to escape being in the same room as Damon - however, that would have meant fussing, people, well, not people **people** , the Jacksons fussing around her 24/7. Sure, it wasn't that bad of a trade off even if she despised their behavior when they entered the insane **concerned** mode... on the other hand Damon and what Damon could do to her was far worse. Damon slightly off his rocker, mind you... But she didn't fake an illness, things had being going so off her plans - apart from saving Tanner's stupid ass and keeping Caroline way from Damon, everything else had failed- that she didn't knew what could happen in said party so, maybe, it was better if she was there. Who the hell was he using as a substitute for Caroline? Was Stefan going to spike his drink? Was he even getting locked in the cellar?

She did wonder, as she made the bubbly liquid swirl in the glass, just when had her almost palpable fear of Damon started. She had honestly used to love **bad** Damon and his abrasive and sarcastic nature through the season one. Sure, he was an ass and as the story progressed she was glad to discover more sides of him. She _mostly_ rooted for him and now, now the bare mention of his name made her almost pee in her knickers. She was aware that as far as antagonist went, he wasn't even the worst she could come in contact with. That made her heart beat wildly again, good lord, how was she supposed to survive an encounter with Klaus?

She takes another eager gulp, finishing the drink in her hand almost automatically and ditching the glass in a nearby table. She needed another one, she needed another drink so that her buzz calmed her down. Not enough to get plastered and say something that would make the one she wanted to avoid murder her, but enough so that her heart wouldn't beat of her chest if she saw him. She hadn't come in contact with either of the Salvatores, but she was fully aware that they should be around - one of them was since she had seen Elena.

"There you are," Caroline mumbles as she warps her hand over her wrist. Olivia jumped on her feet making the blonde look at her worriedly. "You okay Libbie?"

"Great," she says with somewhat out of breath. If her skittish behavior didn't end she was going to attract attention and she couldn't afford that. "You scared me Care."

The blonde shakes her head as she pulls her away from the table she had dropped her glass at. "You've been strange since we got here."

"'Fraid to burst your bubble but Fred's always been strange," Alex states giving an unimpressed look at the blonde. His gaze sweeps her face trying to find something that pointed that his sister wasn't okay.

Caroline scoffs pulling his attention back to her. "Scared off your date already?"

Most of the Jacksons, herself and Cassandra excluded, had brought dates to the party. Well, Daphne had come with Jenna so she wasn't aware if it counted like a _date_. She had been surprised when she asked Alex if he wanted to come with her. Sure, Caroline had stated that she was free to stick with her and Tom but she seriously didn't want to be the third wheel... again. So, she asked Alex if he was okay with accompanying her. In a truly bored fashion he informed her that a girl from his class had asked him and he said yes - it was like he had accepted his invitation like he had nothing better to do by the tone of voice he used. Now, apart from being in a party that she didn't want to be, with someone that she really didn't want to see also attending... she was forced to do it alone. Well, sort of. She and Bonnie had bonded over the fact that they seemed like losers with no dates. But now Bonnie was bonding with Elena - and possibly Stefan - which had led her to sulk as she had a couple of drinks of liquid courage, or something of the sort. It was more of a case of liquid 'let me control my heartbeat' sort of thing.

"Nah." There was a smirk at his lips. "She went to freshen up or some crap with her friends. Should be here shortly."

Caroline groans making Tom caress her shoulder in a vain attempt of calming her down. "Don't know why she asked you to be her date."

"'Cause I'm apparently really attractive," he shares with the smirk still in its place. "You should know, you tried to get in my pants-"

"Alex!" Tom half yells with a glare as Caroline gaps looking positively mortified. If it had happened with her she was sure that she would have fled the scene. God, she felt second hand embarrassment and it had nothing to do with her.

He seemed unperturbed almost as if he hadn't said anything wrong. "What?"

Olivia, knowing that this would only get worse, sighed. "Okay. Both shut up." She gives a pointed look to the brothers that were glaring at each other. "Seriously, enough." While Alex looks to her sheepishly, as if he was trying to convey that this wasn't his fault, Tom sighs. "Thank you."

"How do you stand him? He's such a dick." She gives a pointed look to Caroline that immediately pouts. "You heard what he said!" The blonde defends herself. "Who in their right minds says this sort of crap?!"

Olivia sighs. Now she felt like having alcohol for a completely different reason. One way or another this party was off to a terrible start. "I get it," she says tiredly. "You don't like each other. I, however, do. I like you, him and him." She says pointing at Caroline and the Jacksons. "And I'd very much like that every time that we're together that we don't start this."

Alex scoffs. With a small smile on his lips, as if the whole thing had be a fruit of her morbid imagination, he ignores the couple. "Wanna have a drink?"

She grins. "Sure!"

"No!" Caroline narrows her as grabs her arm before she could walk away with Alex. It was now Caroline's turn to glare at Alex. "We are supposed to spend some time together, remember?"

She did. She had promised Caroline (at the blonde's insistence) that they would spend time together and have, at the very least, one dance. "We're just getting a drink away from prying eyes," Alex counters pointing to Cassandra that was at the other side of the room chatting with Caroline's mother. "Not running away. Even though that running from you sounds like a great idea."

Olivia rolls her eyes feeling exasperated. They acted like children sometimes, unbearable children. "I promised that I won't disappear," she tells her gently ignoring Alex's input. "I'm just really bored Care."

"Fine." Caroline lets go of her arm. "You owe me a dance." Once the words were said, a small smile appears on her lips.

Olivia nods. "I'm sure that meanwhile, Tom will gladly keep you entertained." She nudges him. "Right?"

He kisses Caroline's temple. "Of course." With some flourish, he extends his hand to her. "Care to join me for a dance?"

Alex rolls his eyes moving his attention to Olivia. "What's your poison?"

"Your pick."

Alex grins mischievously. "I know just what to get you."

And that had been how Olivia had found herself with Tyler, Vicki and her brother. Their fight hadn't occurred yet - hell, it wasn't even dark - but it was clear that they weren't having a good time and that something unpleasant was brewing. Both of them looked surprised as she and Alex made way to them but it was clear that they were somewhat relived. She did wonder what exactly had been happening before she and Alex appeared for them to act like that.

Even if Olivia had been _forced_ to reevaluate her opinion of Tyler - she had never liked season one Tyler to begin with - she still thought that the guy deserved a good smack in the head. Sure, she understood that his issues with his dad did colour his views of life and made him act as an ass and there was also the fact that he was a werewolf and they were known for being violent. Yet, she couldn't really condone the shitty way he treated Vicki. Yeah, she was by no means her favourite character... but an ass was an ass no matter who he was being an ass to. But then again, he had been nice to her when she was searching for Alex to avoid his possible dismemberment.

"You two running from the party too?" Vicki made a point to look to Tyler who promptly rolled his eyes ignoring her jab.

Alex shakes his head before elaborating, "Came for drinks."

Tyler grins as he pulls something from his pocket. "Came to the right place." He hands the flash to Alex. "Don't spread the word."

Alex scoffs. "Yeah, yeah." He looks to her and raises an eyebrow. "You wanna go first?"

She nods and immediately accepts the flash he had extended. "Thanks."

Tyler gives her a curt nod before looking at the door. "Coast's clear."

Whatever it was, it burned her tongue and she could feel herself flushing pink. She takes another gulp, a bit larger before passing it to her brother. Now she was feeling a bit warmer. She seriously hoped that the swirl she drank was just what she needed to calm down. "Thanks."

Vicki was giving her a weird look. "You alright?"

"Yeah." She smiles trying to reassure the girl that whatever she thought that was happening, wasn't. "These things are boring."

Alex has already finished drinking. "Could be worse," he told her. "Now, we should get inside before the golden couple sends a search party for us."

"Or your date," she says as a possible alternative.

Tyler laughs at Alex's shrugs. "You look really excited man."

"So do you," Vicki quips making him frown. Whatever relief her and Alex's presence had offer, it was now disappearing.

Alex shares a look with her. "Uh, so yeah. Later," he mumbles awkwardly before pulling her away. "That will not end well," he whispers to her once they were at a distance.

She nods. She knew the outcome better than he did. "Yeah."

"Is there a reason why you're drinking so much?" When she raises an eyebrow he smiles. "You had three glasses of champagne already and ever since the summer... you slowed down. No more party animal Olivia Jackson."

Again, she had no clue what Olivia Jackson had been up to or the things that she did before. "I really didn't want to be here," she confides with complete honesty. "Plus, everyone has a date and I don't want to spend the party with Cass..."

He scoffs. "You could have gotten a date if you wanted," he points out. "You want to stick with me and my date?"

She shakes her head giving him a look that clearly stated that he was crazy for suggesting it. "I'm okay, just bored. Go have fun, I'll be alright."

"If you say so," he mumbles as if he wasn't completely sure if he should believe her or not.

Olivia found herself relaxing as time progressed. She spent time with Caroline - the pair dancing and laughing as if they had lost a couple of marbles but thoroughly enjoying themselves as Tom observed them with a giant smile - with Bonnie, who was hiding the _magic_ issues she was having and she even spent a bit of time with James and the date he brought (a nurse from the hospital). As time progressed she started convincing herself that she wouldn't face Damon. That today was not the day that she would come face to face with the season one big bad. It was dark already and she hadn't been pulled to any of the drama. So, she was in a splendid mood and the alcohol she had consumed had lowered her inhibitions to the point that she was actually having fun. Maybe playing dress up and going to silly parties - as long as she wouldn't meet a vampire that could kill her - wasn't that all that bad.

She was dancing with Bonnie, making the other witch giggle and laugh at the crazy and rather silly dance moves she pulled, when Elena approached them. Stefan wasn't in sight - if Olivia was a bit sober, she would have wondered what was happening in the background - so, she and Bonnie, pulled the brown haired girl by her hands to the dance floor. They made the girl move by either pulling or tugging her hands or giving her gentle nudges.

"You two are having fun," Elena states with a grin on her lips as she stops all movement.

Bonnie looks to Olivia and smiles. "It's all her. I was moping half an hour ago."

Olivia laughs and bumps her hip against Bonnie's before twirling said girl that giggled at her antics. "I just reminded her that we are strong women and strong women don't need men to have fun."

"Alcohol helped too," Bonnie quips. "How about you?"

"I'm having fun too," she states before grimacing a bit.

Bonnie sighs and raises an eyebrow. "What is it?"

"Nothing," she says unconvincingly making Bonnie give her a pointed look.

Olivia wondered if Elena didn't said what was bothering her because she was there. "Uh... I can go get us a drink," she suggests.

Bonnie rolls her eyes. "You don't have to." She grabs Elena's hand and gently squeezes it. The girls start walking away from the dance floor to one of the empty tables. "Something happened?"

"Not really... It's being a bit strange," she states with a sigh. "I know I shouldn't complain... Stefan is amazing, but there's something really weird going on between him and Damon."

Bonnie frowns. She was looking like this wasn't the first time that she and Elena had this particular conversation. "He tried to kiss you again?" Olivia gaps, she wasn't expecting to hear this particular discussion. Bonnie interpreted her reaction wrong because soon she was explaining what she knew, "Damon is Stefan brother... At the night of the game he tried to kiss her. He's a total creep."

Elena nods with a frown. "I think he's trying to use me to hurt Stefan," she explains. "I don't know what happened between them and their ex... but there's this weird thing going on."

Olivia closes her eyes and pinches her nose. What could she say? She already knew why he was doing it and, well, what he was doing. But she had to have some sort of appropriate reaction or the girls might find her behaviour suspicious. "Did you speak with Stefan?"

Elena shakes her head. "I didn't want to add to the fire," she mumbles quietly. "They seem to have enough problems as it is," she adds as an afterthought.

"You should," Bonnie states with a worried look. "We really don't know the whole story or if Damon isn't going to lie and say you were the one that tried to kiss him." Elena looked offended. "I'm just sayin'... you don't hide things when you did nothing wrong."

Elena sighs. "I know, but saying... Hey Stefan, your brother tried to kiss me isn't going to end well either way."

"It's better if he knows from you," Bonnie insists moving her attention to Olivia. "Right?"

Olivia nods. "Stefan doesn't seem like the sort that would lose his plot over that. I'm aware that your relationship is new and everything is handled with care, but communication is important."

Bonnie looks at her with a grin. "Exactly, listen to the girl that has been Caroline's conscience for the last years. She knows what she's speaking about."

Even if Olivia knew it was harmless teasing, Bonnie's words didn't sit well with her. Caroline in the first season wasn't really what she'd call a mature person, she was filled with insecurities - normal insecurities even if they were a bit silly - and nobody deserved to be mocked for their insecurities. "Don't say that," she mutters shaking her head. "Care is great and I don't like-"

Bonnie raises her hands in the air. "I didn't mean anything by it."

She gives Bonnie a pointed look. She obviously did. "I know that Caroline isn't the easiest person to deal with," she tells Bonnie calmly. "We all know how she is... But she is my best friend and I love her to bits and pieces. Even if you were trying to be funny, it wasn't amusing."

"Hey, hey," Elena mumbles raising her hands in the air trying to prevent a possible fight. "Bonnie really didn't mean anything by it," she insists.

Olivia sighs. Those two would always cover for each other. "I know, I just don't like it."

"I'm sorry," Bonnie mumbles. "I swear I didn't mean anything by it."

Olivia nods. She was ready to drop this topic since it wouldn't get her anywhere. "Okay. So, what are you going to do?"

Elena nods to herself as if she was trying to convince herself that what she was about to say was the right decision. "I'm going to speak with him. You guys are right, we have to speak."

"It's going to be fine," Bonnie promises with a smile. "We're here for you." She looks to Olivia who nods in agreement.

Olivia noticed that something wasn't quite right because Elena shared an almost panicked look with them. Then, the source of her distress - and Oliva's - sat unceremoniously next to Bonnie. He smiled pleasantly. On that second it as like the world had frozen and she could only feel her heart beating against her ribcage. "Hey." He moved his attention to Elena. "Do you know where my brother is?"

"He went to the bathroom," Elena says. "Olivia this is Damon."

She wanted the world to swallow her whole. He was looking to her with a charming smile on his lips and picked up her hand, planting a kiss there. She had to fight off the urge to pull her hand. There was an almost maniac glint in his eyes that reall scared the crap out of her. "Pleasure to meet you."

She forces a smile and nods. "As well." Her heart was beating a little wildly, but given that he was merely looking smug about it, she figured that he didn't think anything by it. "You girls having fun?"

Bonnie didn't look impressed. "We were," she states. "Shouldn't you be with your date instead of high schoolers?"

Olivia laughed relaxing a bit. In this moment Damon wouldn't attack her, she was alright. This was why she adored the other witch. Damon seemed a bit taken back, but took it in stride. "I didn't bring a date," he states, shrugging a bit. That surprised Olivia but then again, she had removed Caroline from his radar. However, she had expected him to invite some random girl. "No one had caught my attention." At that he looks to Elena and smirks.

"Damon," she chides him with her eyes narrowed.

He merely smiles and takes a gulp of his drink. "Oh, here he is." He looks back, the girls following his gaze, and sees Stefan with his arms crossed over his chest. The younger Salvatore didn't seem pleased. He first looks to Elena and then to Olivia, before sitting between his brother and Olivia. "You look grumpy," Damon provokes him.

Bonnie had her eyebrows furrowed and was now looking at Elena questioningly. "You look like you had one too many," Stefan counters. "You girls okay?"

Elena nods with a small smile on her lips, reaching for his hand. "Yes."

"I interrupted their girl talk," Damon adds smiling when he saw annoyance in Stefan's face. "I think they were speaking about you."

Stefan sighs. "Damon," he mumbles tiredly.

Elena seemed to be the one that was the most uncomfortable, so she took it upon herself to make small talk. "I was surprised to see Alex with a date." She was giving Olivia a look that was begging her to reply.

"So was I," Olivia mumbles in agreement. She just wanted to leave but she didn't want to rise suspicion. "He didn't sounded really excited but well... you know him." She then smiles as she looks at the dance floor where both of the Jacksons were with their dates. "I think he's having fun."

Damon raises an eyebrow. "Alex?"

"Her brother," Elena replies.

"One of her many brothers," Bonnie adds.

Damon moves his attention to her. "Big family?"

"Seven siblings," Stefan replies for her with his eyes narrowed. "Did you need something Damon?"

Damon shakes his head. "I was bored and thought that would be a good idea to bond with my little brother friends and girlfriend. You know… meet the people you care about." There was a threatening edge to his words that Olivia knew that the other two girls hadn't caught.

On that moment Caroline, holding hands with Tom, joins them. "Hey!" She greets everyone excitedly. For a few seconds Olivia almost holds her breath as Damon and Caroline look at each other but soon, Caroline was looking to her again. Unlike she had expected neither acted strangely and Damon resumed looking to Elena as if Caroline hadn't caught his attention. "You disappeared on us."

"She was dancing with me," Bonnie tells Caroline with a small smile, sharing a look with Olivia. "It was _groovy_."

Despite feeling tense, Olivia ended up laughing. "I'm glad you're having fun," Tom says squeezing her shoulder.

Caroline pulls a chair and places it next to Bonnie, leaving enough room for Tom to sit next to her. "Nice to meet you," she tells Damon with a polite smile on her lips. "I'm Caroline."

"Tom," he says as he sits next to Caroline. "Olivia's twin."

Damon furrows his eyebrows and looks at them. "I can see the similarities," he says before introducing himself. "Damon Salvatore, Stefan's older brother."

Tom furrows his eyebrows moving his attention to Stefan. "Didn't know you had a brother."

Damon looked like he had just won the lottery. With a grin he quips, "We don't get along that well."

"Nothing we should discuss right now," Stefan interjects.

Damon nods and gets up. "I see I overstayed my welcome." He looks to the people on the table, ending with Elena. "It was a pleasure."

Once he was away Stefan sighs. "I'm sorry."

"We all know that you can't be blamed for how your brother acts," Tom says with a small smile. "Not your fault... and I'm sorry for what I said. I was just surprised."

Stefan shakes his head. "I should have said something but I wasn't expecting him to show up."

Olivia gets up as well. "I'm getting a drink. Does anyone want something?"

"Oh, bring me something," Caroline requests with a smile on her lips. "My feet are hurting so I'll be here for a while."

"I'll help." Tom motions to get up when Stefan raised his hand so he stopped his movement.

"Since I also want a drink," Stefan mumbles sharing a look with her. "I'll go." He looks to Elena with a smile. "You want something?"

Elena shakes her head. "Just the dance you promised me." He laughs and nods.

"Bring me something too," Tom adds looking to his sister. "Anything is fine."

The walk to the bar was quiet. Olivia was mentally congratulating herself for not acting out - something along the lines of rushing out of her seat screeching bloody murder - whereas Stefan seemed troubled – he didn't know what to think of his brother behaviour. The only thought on her head was that it had gone far better than she had initially predicted. She also thought that now that she had interacted with him she wouldn't, quite possibly, speak with him again today. But then again, ever since she came to this world, luck hadn't really been a part of her life – if the past events hinted at something.

Once they ordered the drinks he looked at her with a somewhat serious expression. "You okay?"

"I survived," She tells him cheekily making a small smile appear on his lips. "How about you?"

"Worried," he declares looking like he wouldn't elaborate. He glanced at the table, seeing the occupants laughing at something before turning his attention back to her. "Did he say something?" His worry and fear were almost palpable.

Olivia shakes her head trying to reassure him. "Nothing out of the ordinary."

He sighs before nodding. "You're having a good time?"

"It's nothing being as terrible as I assumed," she shares. Nothing bad had happened at this point. "I just need a bit of fresh air and I'll be hunky-dory."

He laughs. "I can take care of the drinks," he offers.

She nods. "Thank you. Tell them I went the restroom and that I'll be there shortly." She tilts her head feeling a bit rude all of the sudden. "How about you? Having fun?"

He looked a bit surprised but nodded. "Things would have been better if Damon wasn't around."

"Elena is having a good time," she ends up stating making the vampire smile. She wondered if she should warn him about the conversation that Elena would have with him. On one hand it seemed like she would violate her privacy but in the other hand if she warned the vampire, things could go more smoothly for them. "Okay, you have to keep this a secret." He nods looking serious all of the sudden as if he would hear one of her deepest secrets. "Relax, nothing that important." He furrows his eyebrows in confusion. "Elena is going to address the fact that Damon almost kissed her soon."

He nods. "Thanks for the heads up."

"You were doing me a favour so I returned the courtesy," she says as she grabs a glass of champagne that someone had ordered but hadn't picked up. "I'll be outside."

He nods. "Call if you need me." To any pry ears, it would seem like he was a concerned friend but she was well aware that what he meant was that she should call if Damon did something, so she nods with a smile on her lips and walks away.

As she walked to the garden, ignoring the looks she was receiving, she realized that she did stick out like a sore thumb. It wasn't her clothes, even if the Jacksons weren't swimming in money - after all the bills accounted for eight whereas only three had jobs - they all had appropriate clothes to use in formal events. She was wearing a simple black dress that had Caroline's seal of approval and her blue hair had been tamed into a lovely - even if a bit messy - bun. Caroline had also done her make-up and she was well aware that she looked perfectly fine. Maybe it was the blue hair itself or maybe it was the fact that she really didn't act all that sophisticated. If she was honest, she figured that this was most likely her first formal event. That paired with the fact that she was nervous because of Damon made thing a bit tricky.

Her musings come to a stop when she goes outside. It seemed like Tyler and Vicki were having an argument but instead of the girl leaving the party in a rush, Tyler was the one that left her alone in the garden walking away with his mother. The girl seemed like she was going to cry. Her hands were slightly trembling and she sat on the ground, leaning her head against the wall in a rather tired - and somewhat desperate - fashion. Olivia was debating if she should approach the girl or not, when Vicki started weeping. She couldn't shake off the feeling that she owed something to the girl, so she walked to her decided to at least try to make her feel better - it was the least she could do after leaving her alone with Damon at the night of the comet. If it failed at least she would have tried.

Olivia flattens her dress and sits in the ground next to Vicki. When said girl sees her, she quickly wipes her tears. "You're here to mock me or something?"

"No." She makes a pause trying to come up with something to say that wouldn't make everything worse. She gathered that there were no appropriate words for this situation. Vicki had clearly heard Tyler's mother and he hadn't defended her. She most likely had her hear broken. "You want to talk?"

Vicki shakes her head, she squints her eyes in a suspicious fashion. "Why aren't you at the party?"

"I really don't like these sorts of things," she answers her honestly. "I needed a bit of air away from all that and you looked like you needed someone to speak with."

"Why do you even care? We're not friends and have never been," Vicki states harshly with her eyes narrowed.

Olivia sighs. Well, good intentions paved the way to hell or whatever it was the saying. "I am aware. If you want me to go, I will…"

"I don't know what the fuck is wrong with him," Vicki mumbles after a bit. It was like she couldn't decide if she wanted to confide in Olivia or not. Her gaze was firmly placed at her hands like she didn't have courage to face her. "Or me. I can't get my shit together and I keep making a mess of everything… maybe that's why he doesn't like me and keeps doing this shit to me." She places her head on her hands hiding her tears from view, the only thing that indeed hinted that the girl was crying was her chest movements.

Olivia sighs as she looks straight ahead. "Look, I'm certain that things are hard for you… you don't have the easiest of lives and even if you make mistakes, everyone muddles up at some point," she shares with the girl. The girl looks to her as if she was waiting for Olivia to tell her it was all her fault and that she her previous words where just to further mock her. "And you shouldn't really let him affect you this much, neither of them." She gives Vicki a pointed look making her look to her hands in shame. "It's true that I don't know you well but I really think that you, and everyone really, should try to improve themselves because it's what they want-"

"Please, if I had a life like yours-"

"You also don't know me Vicki," she tells the girl with tone tinged by sadness that made the girl shut up. "It's really easy to judge someone when you don't know them and I'm not turning this into a competition of who has it worse. Everyone has problems. You, me… even Tyler." She makes a pause trying to access if her words where making sense to Vicki. "You deserve to be happy, everyone deserves to be happy. If you really want things to get better you have to change things, you can't do the same and hope for a different outcome."

Vicki frowns. "Yeah, like anyone cared for the 'trash'."

"You're not trash," Olivia tells her sternly. "You are a girl with problems and doesn't see a way to fix them. But you can if you want to, it's on you. It's not on Matt, Tyler or anyone else. It's on you. And if you fuck it up at least you tried, that's what matters… that you tried to change it."

"Behind all that blue hair there's wisdom," Vicki teases with a small smile. "Thanks…"

"You're welcome and for whatever it's worth, people care about you."

Vicki snorts. The way she looked at Olivia could easily be translated to 'are you serious right now?' sort of look."C'mon at least don't start bullshitting me."

"I wasn't going to say me." Olivia rolls her eyes. "I barely know you. I mean your brother, he clearly loves you."

Vicki smiles. She clearly agreed with Olivia's stament. "He does, doesn't he?" Olivia nods. "What are your problems anyway?" Vicki was looking curiously to her making Olivia raise an eyebrow. "I could hear you too..." She offers.

No one could help her with what was wrong with her but she was aware that she should give something to the other girl, so it would seem that she hadn't been lying just to make her feel better. "I feel like I don't belong," she shares. Hell, she knew that she didn't belong. The other girl snorts making her narrow her eyes. "I'm serious. People sometimes expect me to act in a certain way and when I don't, they get..." she sighs. "Look, like I said, I'm not saying that my issues are more important than yours. Maybe it's stupid." It really wasn't since she had one day woken up in a different world, however, she couldn't say that to Vicki. To be honest, she was aware that she couldn't say that to anyone given the reaction that the Jacksons had.

"You are different than you used to be," Vicki shared after a couple of seconds of silence. "Last year you wouldn't give a fuck if I was here crying." Olivia shrugs not knowing what to say. "You really think I can turn this around?"

Vicki looked vulnerable on that moment, like she needed reassurance to believe in herself. "It's not going to be easy but if you really want to, you can."

"I'm going to try," the girl states with conviction. "No more running after him, no more drugs." She grimaces, the confidante demeanor disappearing instantly. "I don't know if I can."

Olivia squeezes her shoulder gently. "One day at the time. You can expect tomorrow to be perfect. Baby steps." Vicki nods. "Baby steps and if you mess up, try again till you get it right."

"I don't think that anyone ever told me I could do it." She sighs. "Sure, Matt believes in me but he's my brother... he's supposed to. Thank you Olivia."

A wide smile appears on her lips. Olivia felt like she had done something right. "You're welcome and if you need to chat, I'm here."

Vicki nods and gets up. "I'm going home now." Olivia raises an eyebrow. In the show she went to Jeremy's house. "I need a bath and a good cry."

"Ice cream helps," she advises making the other girl chortle.

"Yeah, ice cream and sappy movies." She extends her hand to Olivia and pulls her up. "Have fun."

Olivia snorts. "Doubtful, but thanks."

She watches Vicki leave wondering if her intervention had made things better. Even if she knew what happened in the plot, she couldn't really predict what consequences her actions would have. She shakes those thoughts from her head, now it wasn't the time to think about it. Maybe once she was home she could try to predict everything but for now, she had to survive the rest of the party. She wondered what would happen with Damon and Stefan. No Caroline - nor date - meant that Stefan didn't have someone to spike the drink... Things had definitely changed from what she had seen, she just didn't know if it had been for the better or not.

Not everything had changed in all fairness. A mountain lion had been caught - killing a couple of people - and Damon was still trying to annoy the crap out of Stefan. Elena was still clueless and Bonnie was struggling with the knowledge she had magic - she did wonder if the latter was aware that the Jacksons were witches. Jeremy was still addicted to drugs, Jenna was still struggling with her parental authority… so, in a way, everything was the same.

She spent a bit more time with her friends before they went to dance with their dates. A guy from school invited Bonnie and even if the girl had seemed reluctant to leave, she ended up going at Olivia's reassurance that it was fine. She was sitting in the same table, taking small sips of her champagne glass - one that Tom had handed to her when he went to dance with Caroline - observing them. Caroline and Tom where laughing as they danced, she had truly never seen the blonde as happy as when she was with Tom and it worried her knowing what was coming and due the fact that she didn't know if their relation would survive the hardships. Elena and Stefan were also dancing, seemingly on their own bubble; Alex was now making out with his date and she had quickly move her attention to something else since it did make her feel a bit nauseous - maybe she did thought of him as a brother and that did make her smile. Even if, like she had told Vicki, she didn't belong, she had forged friendships.

She was distracted, so distracted, that she only noticed Damon when he sat next to her.

Her heart was now beating rather loudly and she automatically narrowed her eyes. He had scared her. Damon, in true Damon fashion, smirked. "Still boozing it up?"

She sighs trying to will her heart into calming down. "It would seem so," she states feeling proud that her voice didn't waver or hinted at her massive discomfort.

He was giving her a curious look. "So, tell me... You and my little brother are friends?"

"We share a couple of classes," she tells him. "My brothers are on the team with him." She pointed to Tom's general direction - who was still dancing with Caroline.

"Not friends?"

She really would like to know what the guy was planning so that she could give him whatever it was that he was looking for. Spending more than an instant with him didn't seem like the logic or the wise thing to do. "That would be a bit of a stretch."

Damon grins. "Ouch. You seemed to be having a pleasant conversation by the bar."

 _That you totally overheard._ "And so are we," she points out. "Still wouldn't say that we're friends."

He laughed and for a second she almost forgot why this guy scared her to death. Almost. It was as if he found her terribly amusing. "Stefan always had trouble making friends. But he seems to be faring better," he added as he looked to Stefan who was dancing with Elena. He made a point in raising his glass when said vampire looked at him.

"Wouldn't presume to know what goes on in Stefan's life," she states also raising her glass hoping that it would signal that everything was okay... for now. "Like I said, I'm not really his friend."

He sighs, as if he was a rather concerned older brother. He lowers his tone as he looks to her worriedly. "It's just... well, after his ex." He was looking at her face trying to see any changes in her demeanor. "I don't think he ever got over her, now he's with Elena... And Stefan always went head first... I'm worried he'll get hurt. That things don't end well this time... He deserves to be happy, you know? Even if he sometimes fucks it up."

She raises an eyebrow. So, he was feeding her information in the hopes she'd blab to Elena? And could she safely assume, due the words he was using, that he had overheard her conversation with Vicki? "Damon," she called him almost gently. "Maybe you should have this conversation with him? Even if we forget the fact that I'm more of an acquaintance than anything... I have nothing to do with how he lives his life, nor with how Elena lives her life. Got my own drama to deal with," she told him trying to effectively dissuade him from trying this again in the future. "Older siblings, schoolwork." She makes a pause and grins. "Getting more alcohol without getting caught."

He gives her an appreciative smile. "I can help with the latter."

"I'm sure you have better things to do," she told him. "Now, I'm going to go before my older siblings notice we're here speaking with alcohol and launch an interrogation that would make the Spanish inquisition weep in embarrassment." She forces a smile. "Have a good night Damon."

He raises his glass to her. "My offer still stands Olivia."

"Thank you." She gets up, leaving the glass behind, and walks to the bar.

Speaking one on one with Damon had been hard. It helped that he hadn't threatened her but the mere fact that he had been so close and could have snapped her neck before anyone had noticed did make the adrenaline pump. She wondered if he had noticed that her heart at time had beat a little too violently and if he had what had been the explanation her had come up for it. Had he noticed that there was something strange with her or had he been too preoccupied with his plans?

Soon her worries completely disappear. The party was coming to an end and several people had started to leave - plus, she hadn't seen Damon after their weird conversation. She was waiting at the entrance for James. Cassandra had been one of the first to leave claiming that she was beyond tired; Daphne left with the Gilberts since she had driven Jenna there; Tom and Alex had also left with their dates and the first had gotten permission from the older siblings to spend the night at Caroline's house. She was beyond happy that the night had been uneventful. Well, it had its dramatic bits but nothing like people getting bitten so she was taking her victories where she could find them. If she knew what was coming, she would have insisted going with James to the car instead of giving him time to spend with his date and snog her a couple more times before driving them home.

The first sign that something was about to go to pot was that there were almost no one there, there was only a couple of people and they were at a distance. If movies and series had taught her anything it was that when there weren't many people around things went from bad to worse in a blink of an eye. The second sign - more like a neon sign that really screamed 'danger' - was the fact that Damon was walking to her with a smile. Maybe it had been stupidity or nativity, but even if her heart acted as if it was about to explode, she had assumed that he wouldn't do something to her. Nothing in their exchanges had been **that** strange so she assumed that she had nothing to fear as long as she didn't provoke him - and she wasn't mad enough to provoke Damon Salvatore. She held onto the illusion that he just wanted to tell her something and that it would end fast and well. She hadn't done anything to provoke him and even if he was off his rocker, she didn't think that he would attack her and draw attention to himself. Then again, it wasn't like there were that many people around… he could always try to take her to a secluded place and bite her head of – given that he was a vampire, that could literally happen.

"You're leaving?"

She nods with some hesitancy. "My brother's getting the car." What she really meant was that he should put a stop to whatever he was planning because her disappearance would be noticed.

He takes a swing of his drink. "You look tense," he comments conversationally as if they were discussing the weather.

"I'm tired," she points out. She wasn't in a mood to play one of his games, so she tried to get him to say whatever it was that he wanted to share. "Do you need something Damon?"

"I need a lot of things." There was a grin in his lips that did nothing to calm down her nerves. "For now I'll just ask why you are so scared of me." He had a faux offended expression and had placed his hand over his heart for good measure. "I've been nothing but pleasant to you all night and I have this weird impression that you were avoiding me."

She tried really hard to not let her fear be visible. "Why would I?"

He shrugs. "At first I thought you wanted to jump me." There was a smug grin in his lips. "But you couldn't leave fast enough the second time. Even now." He makes a motion with his arm, pointing to her clearly defensive posture. "Every time to take a step you walk way." As if to illustrate his point, he walks to her making her walk backward. "And that just hurts my feelings."

She felt so relieved when she Stefan placed himself between them. She felt like thanking him repeatedly and kissing his face in reverence. "What are you doing Damon?"

"What are **you** doing brother?" Damon seemed like he was having the time of his life. "Shouldn't you be escorting Elena home, giving her a good night kiss and promising to dream about her?"

"Damon," he mutters sternly. "Stop. Olivia has nothing to do-"

Damon sighs, interrupting him. "Olivia is scared of me. Now why would a girl be scared of me brother?" He looks to her over his brother shoulder. He smirks and wiggles his eyebrows a bit. "I'm charming and really attractive." He narrows his eyes. "The only reason I gathered is because she knows something she shouldn't know." He smiles. "Which leads us to our next point. Should I kill her or should you? You've been sloppy Stef... And I'm offended that once I decide to clean up the mess you make one." He grins looking at her. "Don't worry sweetheart, it won't hurt... much."

"You won't do a thing," Stefan mutters clenching his fists.

Damon laughs. "And who's going to stop me?" He looks condescendingly to his brother. "If you don't drink the yummy stuff you aren't strong enough to stop me," he mocks Stefan. "So I'd like to see you try."

Getting tired of his games, Stefan walks to Damon and grabs him by the arm. "Leave Olivia."

"Didn't work," Damon mumbles with amusement. "My turn."

Olivia was walking away calmly, trying not to further worsen the situation when she feels a swoosh of air against her exposed skin. She didn't have time to scream as Damon dragged her away. The force he was using to take her with him made her bones hurt - she was going to have nasty bruises if she survived this - and she was positive that she had met her end. The pain was only fueling her adrenaline and she knew that to survive this she'd have to attack him before he had a chance to harm her. The issue was that she was low on magic juice and if she depleted her power, he was going to kill her before she could let a word out. This had gone bad too quickly and she was starting to think that she had been really silly to have gone to the party. She should have known that he was going to notice that something was wrong with her... she should have faked an illness.

Even if she rationally knew that the **run** to the woods - where Damon had dropped her on the ground adding to her injuries - hadn't been long, part of her felt like it had taken an eternity and another part felt like it had been way to short. Despite everything, all the feelings of wanting to return to her world and really not belonging (or wanting to belong)... Olivia didn't want to die. Death was permanent and as long as she could breath, there was a chance that she could fix her situation.

His face - vampire face - did nothing to calm her down and she assumed that he hadn't bitten her yet because he was not only thriving on the fear she was oozing but also because he wanted Stefan to witness her death. His vampire face seemed scarier than she had first deemed possible. She didn't know if it was the weird veiny texture bellow the eyes, the colour of said eyes or even the pointy fangs. Bloody hell, this was like a scene straight out a horror movie and the passage of time was punctuated by her whimpers. She was sure that she had broken or twisted her leg and that there was no way that she could possible run from him.

"You're doing fine baby," he coos mockingly. "Just like that... you should cry a bit more... that will make Stefan lose it."

"Don't do this," she mumbles trying to fight the urge to cry harder. She needed Stefan to get there so she had a chance at survival.

Damon smiles looking even more frightening. "You know that I have to."

"Damon!"

Stefan's yell had been what he had been waiting for. When he lunged, nicking the skin of the junction of her neck and shoulder, she used every bit of magic making him screech. "Mother fucker!"

Stefan quickly runs to her, tossing his brother way. "Don't come close to her." With his eyes on his brother, he picks her up, his own fangs appearing due the smell of her blood. "I'm sorry," he mumbles as his face returns to normal.

She does her best to cover her wound. "I'm going to let go of him," she mumbles. "Okay?" He nods as he supports her weight.

As soon as she stopped hurting Damon, he jumps up of the ground. He looked angry but then he laughed. "A witch?! You're a witch?"

She narrows her eyes. "I told you to leave her alone," Stefan reminds him as he hands her his jacket. Instead of dressing it, she places it against her wound trying to stop the blood. "Now look what you've done!"

Damon laughs. "This was a plot twist." He was looking at her. "You're tasty." He makes a grand gesture of licking his lips making her harm him again.

"Stop that," she says with a high pinched voice. "You are suck a wanker. Bloody hell, I want to kill you! I finally understand why so many people want you dead, you are infuriating!"

"Part of my many charms," he quips with a smirk. Feeling angry with what he had put her through and his 'not a care in the world' behavior, she harms him again.

Stefan squeezes her hand and points to him. "He won't do a thing now." Reluctantly, she stops hurting Damon. It wasn't like she could keep it up any longer. Soon, she'd be bleeding from her nose.

"This was exciting," Damon mutters as he gets up, slower this time. "But I gotta go. People to hurt and whatnot." With his eyes fixed on her he smirks. "I'll be seeing you." After winking his eye, he runs away.

Once he left it was like the last bit of strength she had disappeared and her legs immediately buckle. She still couldn't believe that her heart was beating – and it was beating rather violently. The worst part was that even if she had survived she was positive that this was merely one of the many life threatening situations that she would find herself.

She slides against Stefan's side almost falling down – she still couldn't decide if her legs giving out had been due relief that the situation had ended or if she really had lost all of her strength. He did a good job of holding her but it was clear that the fact she was bleeding was taking a toll on him. The veins in his eyes kept flickering and she started to wonder if he'd try drink from her. He helps her to the ground and once she was settled, he bites of his wrist, extending it to her. She didn't know if he was ashamed of his action but it was clear that he was feeling uncomfortable. He couldn't meet her gaze and his arm was merely sticking in the air, blood dripping in the ground, as he waited for her to accept what he was giving her.

"I'm really sorry," he mumbles. "You should... drink so you don't have any wounds."

She knew that if the Jacksons discovered what had transpired things would definitely explode in her face. With a slight hesitancy, she touches his arm. Even if she didn't want to drink his blood – if she died she was sure that her issues would triple – she couldn't return to the house like that. They would either lose their plots or lock her up – after extracting information from her by any means they deemed necessary – or they'd launch a search in the area and find and stake both of the brothers. Neither of the possible outcomes seemed good. Hell, in all honestly she couldn't decide which was worse, and that really meant that both were shitty.

With her eyes closed and mentally preparing herself to the awful taste his blood was sure to have, she pulls his arm closer and places her lips in his wound. She was surprised that drinking his blood wasn't as gross as she had first expected. Sure, it wasn't something that she'd like to do again... it did taste like she was licking a metal spoon and the thickness did turn her stomach but she felt magic entering her system. The fact that the blood was pouring also helped, she was sure that if she had to duck his wound things would have been far worse. Plus, it was seriously giving a magic buzz… maybe vampire blood wasn't at all bad. It was almost like she was getting magic like when she siphoned from one of her siblings. She only noticed that she was in fact also siphoning magic from him when he pulled his hand from her with a slightly frightened expression.

"What was that?"

Oh, she had fucked it up. "I'm sorry," she mumbled closing her eyes in shame. Oh, she was making a mess after the other.

She felt movement next to her and soon he was sitting on the floor next to her. "Was that... normal?" When she peered at his face she could see that he was confused but had deemed her not dangerous.

"For me," she states. "I kind of lost control for a bit." Maybe it was because he didn't know the first thing out of witches or because he knew that she was _odd_ regarding the normal standards but he didn't press.

She heard him sigh. "I am really sorry. I didn't think he'd attack you."

"Neither did I. I discovered that too late." He nods. She could see him struggling. He opened and closed his mouth a couple of times before sighs. "What is it?"

Stefan had a sad smile on his lips. "Thank you for not killing him."

"Next time I might not have a choice," she pointed out closing her eyes. "I apologize in advance."

He laughs, surprising her. "Damon's an ass but I don't think that he'll try to harm you again. I'll make sure he understand that it isn't in his best interest."

"He should stay clear out of my family too," she states. She was about to elaborate when her phone rings. She looks with panic to Stefan that immediately grabs her hand and squeezes it in reassurance and comfort.

"Say you went to the bathroom. We'll clean you up and he won't notice."

She nods before answering the phone. "Jimmy."

"Where the hell are you?!"

She sighs. "I had to use the bathroom."

"I'm waiting for five minutes," her brother states with a harsh tone. "You should have warned me. Why are you taking so long?"

With her eyes locked in Stefan's she says the only thing she knew that would make her brother stop questioning her. "I just got my period." Stefan widens his eyes making her smile. "I had to find some-"

"Are you almost done," her brother asks with a much gentler tone.

"I need a couple more minutes. I found someone that is going to lend me some tampons," she says almost feeling her brother discomfort.

He sighs. "Okay Ivy. We'll make a pit stop for ice cream."

"Thank you Jimmy."

When she disconnected the call, Stefan picked her up and took her back to the house. The number of people had diminished but thankfully they weren't caught by anyone. They entered the bathroom and he helped her remove all traces of blood and dirt from her person. It didn't take that long since there were two pair of hands dealing with the mess. While she was tugging and slapping the dirt away from her dress, he was gently cleaning her face with a wet piece of paper. If the whole thing hadn't been traumatic, the fact that Stefan Salvatore was fixing her make-up would have made her laugh like a mad woman. Surprisingly enough, he also fixed her hair making her laugh as he reminded her that he did in fact had a talent with hair - one of the perks of being his friend. He completely dissembled the hairdo that Caroline had made hours ago – it seriously felt like days had passed since the morning – and with a much gentler touch than she had deemed impossible to someone that wasn't a hairdresser to have, tugged her hair till it was an almost exact copy of what Caroline had done.

He kept speaking with her, making several humorous and slightly self-decrepitating remarks as they worked. The skin deep humour was noticeably out of place. It was clear than neither wanted to discuss what had taken place in the woods and the ramifications of said event so it was easier to joke as if she hadn't almost died and as if his brother wasn't really a danger to Stefan and everyone around. Olivia didn't even know why wasn't she walking to the Sheriff and giving Damon's name. The guy was clearly a nutcase and even if things got better in the future, it was possible that he was going to harm her and the Jacksons or maybe even kill one of them. She also didn't know what it meant for the events to come, wasn't he going to be locked out in the cellar today?

Once she looked like nothing had happened, under the careful watch of Stefan - that despite knowing that the odds of Damon striking again were dim - walked to the car and drove away with James. Only when the car was out of view and he could no longer hear the engine, did he leave the party. The day had gone way worse than he had ever predicted. Stefan had expected his brother to provoke him and try to mess with his and Elena's relation - like when he told her the story behind the **original** Salvatore brothers - but he had never expected him to go after Olivia. Sure, it was clear that the girl feared him, her heart would always thump loudly when he spoke with her... but to attack her without knowing for sure that she knew something was a testament just to how out of control his brother really was. And the girl hadn't really acted like he had expected her to. Sure, she had avoided his brother - that much he had predicted - but he didn't understand why she had allowed him to drag her away. Was it to keep up the pretenses that they were all human? Had it been for their benefit or theirs?

She had looked so scared when he gotten to the woods. Lying on the ground, looking like a mess with her mascara all smudged and fat tears rolling down her cheeks almost as if she was really a human ready to meet her end. Then she did what she had done when he and her brother gotten in a fight. She probably gave Damon the worst headache he ever had on his life and even then his brother continued with his stupid banter. For the second time (or was it third time?) since he had gotten to Mystic Falls he almost lost control. She was bleeding, a superficial wound, right next to him and he could feel his control slipping. Maybe she didn't notice, she hadn't cowered in fear nor had tried to put distance between them but he knew that his brother had. His gaze had taunted him as if he had expected Stefan to drink her dry. He didn't, he was better than that nowadays... the point was he hadn't expected his life to get so complicated all of the sudden. He just wanted to be happy and with Elena he was. He had found someone with whom he could almost be himself. There were things that for both of their benefit he had to hide but he was happier than he had been in years and he couldn't help but to feel that his pursuit of happiness was putting everyone in danger.

He had to do something about Damon because one thing he knew and was sure that hadn't changed in the years that they had spent apart. His brother didn't know when to stop and despite everything, he didn't really wanted Damon dead... And this time around, he wasn't the only one that could seriously harm his brother. This time Mystic Falls had inhabitants that could very easily make sure that his brother never harmed anyone again. Knowing Damon, it was just a matter of time till he pissed one of them off.

* * *

Even if the day had just started, Olivia felt like it was dragging itself. Stefan was missing from the classes, she had overheard a conversation between Bonnie and Elena where the later told the first that Stefan had sent a message informing that he had to deal with something that had come up. It all pointed that he had locked his brother in the basement but she did wonder how did he accomplished it without spiking someone's drink.

Last night had made her reevaluate things. She had been right, Damon was dangerous but she had come out of it relatively unscathed. Okay, she had been bitten **but** she had been able to defend herself and Stefan had given her his blood... so now there wasn't even a trace of what happened in her body. She was still a bit sore but it was to be expected. Being tossed around by a vampire never ended well. The point was that she was stronger than she had given herself credit... maybe she could really deal with this mess.

She was leaving the bathroom when she felt a swoosh of air. Her first thought was that she had been wrong and that Damon hadn't been locked out and was now going to enact some sort of torture on her as a revenge. That didn't last long because Stefan rapidly told her that it was him so she could stop struggling. Once she placed her in the ground she narrowed her eyes as she debated if she should harm him nor not - he had scared the life out of her.

"Don't do that," she mutters with her arms crossed over her chest. Once again she was at the wood – she was honestly starting to really hate the place. "You can't kidnap me... There are laws."

He was looking sheepishly to her. "I just wanted to speak with you... See how you were doing and." He makes a pause, sighing. "To tell you that Damon's not a problem."

If she was in the right state of mind, her next words would have never left her lips. "You locked him up?"

He nods slowly as he observes her face. "How do you know?"

It was now her turn to smile sheepishly. "I... guessed?" She had to admit that she had done a terrible look at looking convincing.

He shakes his head, giving her a pointed look warning her that he wasn't fooled. "We can address that later. How are you?"

"I'm okay... my neck and leg are still a bit sore," she adds. "And you?"

He sighs as he runs his hand over his neck. "I'm okay. Damon shouldn't be a problem any longer..." When he realized that she didn't look at all convinced her squints his eyes. "How did you know Olivia? What else do you know?"

She knew that this conversation could get bad really fast. She didn't believe that Stefan would harm her but she wasn't so sure that if he discovered the extent of her knowledge that he wouldn't try to use it to his advantage... if there was one thing that she really didn't want to, was to have Stefan call her at every second of the day to know the future. "Look, I have to be honest with you." Her tone of voice was strong without being harsh. She had to end this before it started or she'd never have another moment of peace. "I know things, I really know a lot of things. I'm not opposed to help you from time to time... but in no way or manner am I to become your crystal ball. I'm my own person," she finishes. "And what you've done will just piss him off once he gets free."

He furrows his eyebrows. "But he's not going to." She merely raises her eyebrow. "He's locked in a cellar full of vervain. He's not going to just **break free**."

"I don't know who he's going to use but trust me, he's going to break out." She sighs. "Warn Zach... he's the one that is in the most danger."

His tone of voice becomes stern, "Olivia what do you know?"

"I need to get back. I have classes," she mumbles as she tried to walk away. Promptly, his hand was warped in her upper arm. "We already spoke Stefan. I'm not going to tell you what's to happen... you can mess it up even more."

"Why?"

She sighs as she removes his hand from his arm. "You mean well and as the saying goes... the way to hell is paved with good intentions. Plus, I don't know everything," she lies. "If I tell you things and you change them I'll know nothing."

"You can't-"

"I can do what the bloody hell I want," she snaps with her eyes narrowed. "Me waiting to help you is not to be confused with me being at your service. I'm my own person Stefan, I have my own agendas." She forces a smile. "Can I go now or is this going to end badly?"

Part of him didn't really believe that she could see the future whereas the other did - mostly because she had guessed that he had locked Damon. What he did know was that pressing the matter would make things worse. By her demeanor she wasn't kidding nor bluffing. He didn't know Olivia Jackson well, if he was honest the more he discovered the less sense the girl seemed to make – starting from the moment she interrupted her brother's fight with him, saving his life, to how she had acted last night - but he had seen her posture countless other times over the century he had lived. Per say. She didn't really look menacing. Maybe it was because that she was small or it was the insanely coloured hair… She looked like a cat trying to pass as a lion, however, he had seen what she was capable of. He knew that if she wanted, this could end badly. If he pressed she would break and that would mean that he'd loose whatever friendship he had forged with her. And, if she hadn't really just taken a good guess – and missed a couple of screws because no one in their right state of mind would pretend to know the future – giving the situation he was with Damon, he was possibly losing a valuable friendship.

Instead of pressing, and to end the uncomfortable silence, he decides to tell her what he should have last night. He sighs, trying to wordlessly let her know that he wouldn't discuss the matter further. "You should be careful for about 34 hours, by then all traces of my blood will disappear. You had quite a bit."

She grins, looking pleased with his decision of changing the subject, and nods. "Got it, no dying or I'll be craving blood. Thank you for that."

He shakes his head. The entire thing had been his fault, he should have been more careful with the way he had handled Damon. He had been fully aware that their encounter wouldn't end well and he still allowed it to happen. If anything, he should be apologizing to the girl. "You don't owe me anything. Oh, I know." He smiles cheekily. "If you really feel indebted you can always accept my friendship."

She laughs. "I can do that. Can you give the friend you kidnaped a lift to school? I really don't want to be late."

"Of course." He lifts her from the ground and flashes her a smile, glad that she was seemingly collaborating with him and letting go of the tense moment of a couple of seconds ago. "What are friends for?"


	7. 007

.

 **War is coming**

 **War is crying out**

 **The world is shaking**

 **The sky is falling down - the sky is falling down**

Into the Darkness – The Phantoms

 **A.N.:** I'm terribly sorry for the wait! I hope that you enjoy the new instalment. Thank you to all those that have commented, followed and favourited the story so far. You guys make my day!

* * *

When she exchanged phone numbers with Stefan Salvatore she wondered and concluded several things. At first it had merely been confusion, he had said that it was in the event of stumbling on his brother - it had been for protection. She did understand that - hell, she was even sort of flattered that he cared enough to be concerned - still, it wasn't like he did know her and, so, she grew suspicious. Maybe he had some sort of angle, maybe this was a trick. But then again, this was Stefan Salvatore, particularly, try hard at being good Stefan Salvatore. He wasn't under the effects of blood - human blood - consumption because as much as she trusted Stefan... she was well aware of what was under all that _hero_ hair. Granted, she had once loved seeing ripper Stefan but now that she could die at his hands the previous amusement she had felt - and dare she say the enjoyment of seeing the **other** side of him - were pretty much dulled. Sure, she feared Damon but Stefan, ripper Stefan, could be so much worse.

All of that had gone through her mind when she had analyzed it later in the privacy of her room. The thing was, when they exchanged phone numbers with him, she had never expected him to be the one to contact her. There had been many reasons to support that conclusion. First, he didn't know her, sure, Stefan was a nice guy - or tried to be a nice guy - but he was by no means stupid. She hadn't done anything to threaten his life or Damon's but (especially after today's exchange when she affirmed that she was her own damn person after he _kidnaped_ her) he couldn't be completely sure that she was on his side. Second, not that the first reason wasn't already good enough, the issue at the moment was Damon and Stefan was very much aware that she didn't particularly like his brother. Hell, she had made it pretty clear that she could very well harm him seriously - or permanently - if Damon tried anything else that endangered her. So, she was sure that he wouldn't call her to help out after all he didn't know her well enough to know just how she'd react or what she would do if he in fact did. If that wasn't enough, there was her family. If his interaction with Alex had hinted at something was that her family did not like vampires - hell, it also made her seriously regret ever pulling Alex into this shit. Third (or was it forth?) and lastly was the fact that during the first season, Stefan barely paid attention to others apart from Elena.

So when she received a text message from him, saying that Olivia was surprised was a massive understatement. She was ashamed to admit that she not only pinched herself but also checked her face in the mirror thinking that maybe she had gone to another body. Oh, Olivia felt like she was losing her mind and when she saw the face she had grown accustomed to see, reflected on the mirror - eyes widen in fear with her lips parted due the sharp intakes of air - she didn't know whether to laugh or cry (or run away dramatically).

The message wasn't anything out of the ordinary or maybe it was, she couldn't really decide. His words had been simple: **I won't be around till everything with Damon settles**. Once the confusion dissipated from her mind she merely blinked as she re-read the message a couple more times. She didn't understand why he was telling her that. Did he wanted to speak freely with someone? Was it because Elena wasn't still on the loop? Was he trying to prove something? Like that he was her friend or was he trying to make her trust him? Oh, this shit was just confusing and trying to guess his angle made her slightly panic. She responded with an **Okay. Good luck.** and forced herself not to think about it any longer. Whatever the answer to why he had contacted her... it wouldn't merely appear because she was staring at the phone and she really didn't want to lose her plot as she tried to guess it. So, she tossed it to the bed and started her morning ritual that for the last week didn't include her moping about being **here** and not _there_. The way she took the message was that at least for a couple of days she'd have peace - Damon was locked and there wouldn't be anything supernatural prowling in the dark - and be able to have relatively normal days. She had finished dressing her clothes and was now about to fix her bed when she saw two new messages from Stefan. **The blood will be out of your system today** and **Could you keep an eye on Elena for me?**. The last message defiantly made her feel annoyed. Was that why he was texting her? So he'd have someone to look after Elena? She scoffs debating whether or not to remind him that she had better shit to do than to be a babysitter. She was still in the midst of her internal struggle - her annoyance turning into anger - when she received the third message: **I know that there isn't danger... but I'd like to know how she is**. She groans as she types: **Then ask her.** With that she decided that no matter his reply she wouldn't definitely get involved in this. This would set a precedent and then he would most definitely get the idea that he could ask her to spy for him - or babysit - and that she'd accept. Okay, this was their show. Elena was in the center of almost everything - if not everything - but now her life was also in the line. Her life, the life of people she cared about and as much as she liked the characters... she came first. She and her loved ones came first and she wouldn't jeopardize that just because Stefan Salvatore wanted to know what was going on in Elena's brain.

During the day it became clear that the vampire did not know how to take the hint. Even if she hadn't replied to his messages - seven and counting - he continuously persisted. First he tried to explain his point, babbling that he couldn't speak to her because she wasn't aware of things - things that he had little to no inclination to share - then it turned to an explanation of why he couldn't just tell her those things. Seeing that she didn't reply to this - in her opinion, delusional - ramblings, he started to inquire if she was angry at him which led to him to apologize and state that apart from Zach and Damon, she was the only one that was aware of who he was. She was almost close to breaking her vow of ignoring him to remind him that Alex knew who he too was since he had tried to kill him.

"What's going on with you?" She looks at Caroline startled, quickly blocking her phone so no one could see what she had just read. The blonde had her eyebrows furrowed as she glanced around Olivia's face. "Seriously... What's the matter?"

"Uh..." It wasn't like she could tell Caroline what was bothering her. She couldn't (nor should) mention that Stefan had started texting her to 'keep an eye' on Elena. That would set off another completely different set of issues.

"Libbie!" Caroline mutters sternly as she narrows her eyes when the girl doesn't reply "You're acting so weird... Just tell me," she adds with a softer tone of voice.

"There's this guy texting me," she tells Caroline begrudgingly making the previous annoyance in Caroline's face turn into delight. "No," she mutters narrowing her eyes trying to end whatever ideas that Caroline was having. "The guy is a thorn in my side."

Caroline seemed confused. "Why? And who's texting you?"

"Doesn't matter because he's going to stop. I'm not answering to him," she replies making Caroline scoff. Caroline seemed ready to argue with her - she didn't know if it would be to discover the content of the texts or who was sending them or even something else- when Olivia sees Tom at a distance. "Don't tell him, okay?"

Caroline merely rolls her eyes. "Can you at least give me the full story later?"

Ignoring her request, Olivia smiles and quickly pecks her cheek. "Thank you," she beams at the blonde.

It was clear that Caroline was trying to remain annoyed but the corners of her mouth where twitching. "You're lucky that I love you, you crazy person."

"I love you too," she declares to the blonde as she warps her hand around her wrist. "Let's eat."

After that she no longer checked her phone in the presence of Caroline or any of the other 'cast' members. However, that didn't mean that Stefan had suddenly realized that she didn't want to speak. The school day had already ended when she realized that even if she didn't reply to him, he'd continue. His last text had merely been her name with an interrogation mark. Not replying wasn't doing her any favors... clearly.

Daphne had ask her to do a few of her chores because she had to go out. Before telling Olivia that she'd be satisfied as long as she started making dinner after clearing the trash cans of the siblings rooms - and doing laundry, since it was her chore of the day - she'd be more that pleased, she explained that she was meeting with Jenna who was in a frenzy because Jeremy hadn't spent the night home and hadn't gone to school. She shoo's Daphne out of the house promising that everything would be fine and wishing her good luck with, what she dubbed, the **Gilbert Drama**. She didn't really remember anything like that happening in the series and briefly wondered if she had changed something that had outset this... Maybe it was because of the talk she had with Vicki? Well it wasn't like Jeremy acting up wasn't anything strange... She wouldn't worry about it before she was sure that she really had something to worry about and this wasn't just Jeremy being... season one Jeremy...

She was in the midst of separating the white clothes from the colorful ones when her phone rang. When she sees Stefan's name flashing she sighs before answering. Dear lord, the guy needed to find some sort of hobby.

"Did something happen?"

She could hear him take a deep breath of air. "You didn't answer," he mumbles almost sounding like a child whining.

"I had nothing to say," she counters with some annoyance. "And you were kind of losing it there pal. The part where you told me that Elena was like a life line to you was particularly creepy."

Despite what she assumed that would be his reply, Stefan laughed surprising her. "I was getting worried, thought you had gotten yourself in some sort of trouble."

"The only thing that I'm in danger of is getting lost under the piles of clothes," she mumbles as she replaces her hand with her shoulder to hold the phone as she returned to sorting the clothes. "Do you think that light yellow should go with the white clothes or the others?"

He hums. "How light?"

"Light light," she answer him as she holds it a little higher as she checked for the tags to see if they had dye in them. "Doesn't look like it stains either."

"White clothes," he tells her. "You're doing laundry?"

"Everyone one around the house helps." She continues sorting the clothes. "We all got our chores."

"Sounds... organized."

She nods despite the fact that he couldn't see. "Oh, it is. Cass has a white board and everything."

"Yeah?"

"Mhm-mhm. In the morning there's a line to check our chores," she jokingly says.

"Really?"

"No," she deadpans.

"Cass is your older sister?"

"Yes. Give me a second, I'm going to load the machine." She looks at the products, her gaze falling in the fabric conditioner. "Lavender or Sunshine Days?"

Without missing a beat he replies, "Sunshine Days."

"Okay, thanks." She carefully places the phone in the ground before walking to the washing machine. Once she had, she quickly places the correct amount of product in their designated places before turning it on. "So what prompted this call?" When he doesn't reply she sighs. "Stefan?"

"Can we continue with the chores talk?"

She sighs again. Oh, she didn't get the guy. "I already took out the trash from my other siblings rooms, I'm waiting for the clothes to finish washing to put them in the dryer and later... I'll make dinner."

"You're the one that cooks?" She could hear a hint of surprise in his voice.

"No," she quickly corrects him. "It's usually Daphne or James. Well, dinner. Cass usually does breakfast and in the weekends Liam, Tom or I will help out with the meals. During the week we usually eat somewhere around the town." She furrows her eyebrows as she walks to her bedroom to start doing her homework. "You really want to hear me talk about chores?"

"Sure," he mumbles. "I never had that big of a family and... well, I had servants and then it was mostly just me."

Instead of making a comment regarding his human days she frowns, he was definitely acting strangely. "Okay weirdo. So the white board of activities also shows our schedules so everyone knows where everyone is."

"Really?"

She laughs at his surprised tone. "Really. For instance, Jimmy... uh, James," she corrects herself as an afterthought. "Is at the hospital. He had a late shift today. It's all in the white board of destiny," she adds.

"Where are your other two siblings?"

"Uh, at uni." She closes the door and walks to her desk. "Can I now ask what's going on? Because I seriously doubt that either talking about washing clothes or my siblings is... relevant," she finishes awkwardly. "So, just say whatever it is that you had to say."

She heard him sigh. "What if I just wanted to check on you?"

She snorts. "I didn't speak all that much with Elena today, so I can't give you the latest scoop. From what I gather she's okay... you know that you can speak with her, right? Nothing is forcing you remain silent."

"With all this." She wondered what **this** was specifically. His brother? The fact that he was a vampire? The attacks? The list was seemingly endless. "I... I just have to deal with Damon... I still worry even if I'm the biggest danger in her life."

"Look Stefan, I'm not going be your informant," she says with somewhat sternly. "Elena and I aren't that close and even if we were, I'd refuse. Okay?"

"I know," he mumbles. "You've made that clear..."

Seriously, this was being weird and she didn't really know how to react to it. "So," she prompts. "Are you going to tell me why you called or are we going to pretend I believe you? And I don't," she points out. Stefan merely sighs in the other end.

"Why wouldn't you? Aren't we friends?"

She fought the urge to scoff. "Stefan," she mumbles tiredly. "I could point out the fact that you barely know me-"

"I'm-"

She continues as if he hadn't interrupted. "Or that the danger I'd been in the past days is currently out of commission, napping in your creepy cellar. Why would you want to check up on me if not for Elena?"

"I'm hurt that you don't consider us friends," he mumbles with a hint of teasing in his tone.

"I'm sure you'll survive," she counters. "I don't have to tell you that we barely know each other, do I?"

"But we have so much in common," he says with a light tone. "Both of us were attacked by the other's brother... who are seemingly rash people..." She sighs with a small smile on her lips. "Not to mention that we both helped each other survive. Traumatic experiences bring people together... C'mon Jackson, you literally had my blood in your veins."

She chuckles despite knowing that this was a serious thing. This definitely was a side of Stefan that she hadn't expected to see... well, with her and this soon at the very least. "Okay, I give you that. I'm willing to admit our friendship even if you didn't write me the list as you said you would."

"I'll send it to you soon." When he realizes that she wouldn't comment he continues, "What's what you making for dinner?"

She laughs, shaking her head. The guy had lost it. "Haven't decided. Recommendations?"

"You can't go wrong with Italian food. Tell me what you ingredients you have and I'll help you out."

It was only then that it occurred to her, Stefan Salvatore seemed to be feeling lonely. He didn't want to contact Elena and Zach wasn't probably the person he felt most comfortable speaking with given... everything... "Deal, you have to wait though... it's too early to start making dinner." She makes a small pause. If she was right, he probably wanted to continue talking. "Want to help out with homework?"

"I might as well keep up with classes..." There was a certain lightness in his tone that made her think that she was right in assuming that he felt alone. "You're going to begin with what?"

"English," she replies.

She hears something in the background. "Okay, got my stuff. What are we doing?"

The conversation shifted to homework and even if Olivia was well aware that she was intelligent, she had to admit that Stefan did help her. It wasn't like that she had depended on him, if he hadn't called she would have done it regardless but his replies to some of the questions did bring her to new perspectives. And when it was time to cook dinner, like he had said, he did help her out with dinner. His instructions were precise and even if she wasn't the best of cooks, she had no problem following - at some points the conversation got a bit silly as she tried, almost desperately, do describe the colors, shades and flavors as she tasted it so he knew how it was turning.

"You completely deserve your _Saint_ Stefan moniker," she teases him as she turns off the stove. "Bet everyone is going to love it."

He chuckles. "Tell me their reactions."

"Will do." She was about to continue, thanking him once again, when she heard Tom and Alex speaking. They had gotten home a while ago and now that they were returning to the kitchen she knew she had to hang up before they asked questions about who she was speaking with. There was no way, in hell or heaven that she'd tell them. "I have to hang up. My brothers are here."

"Oh, okay. Have a nice dinner."

"It's all thanks to you," she states with a light but serious tone. "You... too? Is that even appropriated?"

He laughs. "As appropriated as anything else. We'll speak later."

"Okay."

As she was storing her phone in the pocket, Alex glanced around the kitchen. "Smells good," he tells her with a smile.

Tom nods approvingly. "What did you cook?"

"It's a surprise," she says as she swats his hands away from the pan before he could take a peek. "You'll find out later. You guys finished with your chores?"

Alex glances weirdly at her but doesn't comment. "Yeah. Where's everyone?"

"Shouldn't Daph be home?" Tom agrees.

"Gilbert drama," she mumbles making the two teenagers roll their eyes. "Jenna was distressed, Jeremy did something." Even if she didn't add an **again** she was aware that every single person in the kitchen was thinking the same.

Alex immediately scoffs making Tom sigh. "Do you need help with anything?"

"Took care of everything already," she states as she walks out of the kitchen with the teenagers on her trail. "Maybe we should get in touch with Daphne and Jimmy? I don't know when they're supposed to get home."

"We can do that," Tom says agreeably.

Alex merely shakes his head with a scowl on his face. "Why weren't you at practice today?"

"Was I supposed too?"

Tom groans, shooting a glare in his direction that made the younger teenager puff his chest in defiance. "He's in a pissed mood 'cause he and Tyler warmed the bench today. Acting like an ass gets you that," he mutters looking to his younger brother.

She glances between them trying to understand what was wrong. "Did something happen?"

Alex is the one that breaks their stare of. "Nah, I'm just acting like an ass. Don't pay attention." With a grin, doing what he thought that was a rather cute pose, he walks to her and once he was close he slides his arm over her shoulder. "Wanna help me out with homework Fred?"

She chuckles, shaking her head a bit. Sometimes she got whiplash from his sudden mood swings. "Sure." She moves her attention to Tom - he had a scowl on his face, as if he didn't really approve. "You'll call them?" Tom merely nods. "Thanks."

On the three days that Stefan was missing from classes a new routine was formed. The vampire would text her - and she was surprised that only one third of the messages were regarding Elena. Her assumption that he was feeling lonely seemed to be correct since even if she was speaking of the most trivial things, he'd continue the conversation. She noticed that he made a point in not speaking about supernatural things - the only thing that they did address daily was Damon, Stefan seemed to be decided to keep her on the loop, but that was about it. She really didn't get how the trivial things that they spoke about - that mainly revolved about school, books and movies - helped out but after asking twice what he was trying to achieve and receiving replies in the lines of 'getting to know my new friend' she decided to let it go. She wouldn't get a reply and nothing in their conversations could exactly endanger her.

She also took advantage of the small pause that those three days provided her because she was knew that once Damon broke free the issues would again start. What did worry her was the fact that things were slightly different, not by a huge amount, she still could safely predict how most things would happen but things had definitely changed. For instance, Vicki wasn't spending time with Jeremy - nor Tyler for that matter. While the latter didn't seem to care either way, the first seemed to be acting up even worse than he had on the series. On those three days Olivia caught Daphne speaking with Jenna several times about his behavior. He would disappear from classes and return at odd hours in the morning - Jenna seemed to be at her wits end on how to deal with the teenager. Another of the changes was the fact that Elena was still in the cheerleading squad. Olivia didn't know what that would mean for the plot but it wasn't like it worried her a lot - it seemed like a minor change.

If Stefan didn't spoke much about Elena - probably because whenever he brought her up Olivia would remind him that she wouldn't play the part of spy or babysitter for him - the reverse wasn't true. Whenever she spent time with the girls she'd hear a lot about how the girl was worried (and slightly pissed off) about his behavior. She was worrying that her conversation about how Damon had kissed her had brought this on and, well, it wasn't like Olivia could say something to ease her mind. She didn't want to get pulled to their relationship... And she promised herself that she wouldn't. Those two should deal with their own shit because she had bigger things to worry about.

"But he didn't say anything at all?"

She sighs as she looks to her burger. Maybe she should have gone have lunch with Alex. Caroline glances in her direction making her force a smile as she took a bit of her food. "Just that he had something to deal with," Elena replies as she pokes her fries with a frown in her face. "I don't know what to think..."

"Maybe he had a family issue," Bonnie mumbles as she tries to reassure the girl. "I mean, with a brother like that..." She trails off knowing that everyone could easily understand her point.

"I don't even know if I should be mad or not... It's not like we were official or anything..."

Caroline snorts. "Please, he was all over you... And not in an 'I want to bang you and ditch you' way. I say that you should confront him," she states. "He can't pull that on you and you shouldn't let him."

Elena sighs. "I refuse to be the girl that gets depressed because of a guy."

While Caroline scoffs, as if she didn't approve, Bonnie offers her a small smile. "You'll speak with him when he finishes with his issues... I'm sure he has a reasonable explanation."

"I guess so." Elena then looks to Olivia, who kept eating without adding anything. "What's your take on this?" Olivia widens her eyes as she chocks on the food. Caroline immediately starts smacking her back as she reaches for the water. "Libbie?"

She looks to Caroline, flashing her a smile in appreciation. "Are you okay?" She looks to Bonnie and nods to signal that she was fine now.

Elena had a small smile on her lips. "Sorry if I startled you..."

"S'okay," she mumbles as she takes another gulp of her drink. "About your question. I wouldn't know," she says shrugging her shoulders. "It can be so many things that." She makes a pause as she shakes her head a bit. "Bonnie's right, I guess. You should speak with him once he finishes whatever he's doing."

Caroline frowns. "He's acting like an ass. Tom tried to speak with him the other day, because of practice and barely got a reply." Olivia looks to Caroline with a slightly surprised expression. She didn't know that Tom had tried to contact him nor that he apparently had barely spoken to him... The guy was almost constantly texting her. "Yeah, it was like he really didn't care."

"If he's away because of issues, I guess he has other things to worry about than football practice," She comments as she turns to her food. "Look, I think this is pointless... It's not like we know what's going on."

Caroline groans. "Oh, you're being such a weirdo," she mumbles with a frown. "It's like you're defending him."

"I'm not," Olivia quips with a frown. "What I'm saying is that we don't know what he's up to."

Caroline crosses her arms over her chest. "He's acting like an ass. He owes Elena a serious apology, whatever it is that he's dealing with doesn't mean that he should keep her in the dark... especially after walking around her like he wanted to date her. That's a douchebag move."

Olivia sighs as she raises her hands in the air in mock surrender. The last thing she wanted was to argue with Caroline. "I didn't say anything to contradict that. I agree... and I also think that I have nothing to do with it so I shouldn't be discussing this. It's between them." The girls seemed surprised at her words.

"Seriously, you're being weird," Caroline comments with a worried expression. "Since when do you think that? You gave me plenty of advices before."

Olivia looks to her plate as she tried to arrange her thoughts. She wished she could tell them that she really wanted nothing to do with Elena and Stefan's relationship - the drama that came with it wasn't worth it. "I don't think I'm being weird," she states as she looks to Caroline. "I just don't know what's going on Care... Imagine that I do give Elena an advice, like that she should argue with him and she ends up doing so." She makes a pause with her eyes still focused on Caroline. "Then we discover that he was dealing with serious issues because of his family... like someone was terribly sick. I'd feel like a bloody twat," she finishes giving the blonde, what she hoped that it was, a convincing expression. "That's why I rather not say anything one way or the other. What I do know about this is that we don't know why he's acting like that."

"She's right," Bonnie comments shooting her a small smile. She turns to Elena. "You're not going to contact him?"

Elena shakes her head. "His last reply was that he'd explain things when he finished dealing with whatever it is that he's dealing with."

Olivia abstained from further interacting. She was thankful that at least they refrained from asking her opinion. The only good thing that came with the fact that tomorrow was the day that Stefan was going to return (she sincerely hoped or else the plot had changed more than she had previously predicted) was knowing that at least these conversations where going to stop. However, in light of what was going to transpire she couldn't even allow herself to feel happy for it because the price was certainly high. Even if she had reached the conclusion that she wasn't what one would call **text book** hero she wasn't that bad... or maybe she was, she could no longer tell, after all, she wasn't doing a thing to make teenagers steer clear of the cemetery where a bloodbath would take place... Fuck, she only gave vague warning to Stefan about terrible things that would take place and didn't elaborate. Maybe Olivia was worse than she thought.

During the morning she was feeling a little worried. Stefan hadn't texted her and she still hadn't caught sign that he was returning. Her worries immediately vanish when she sees him speaking with Elena and she lets out a deep sigh of relieve that made both Caroline and Tom look at her with confusion. She mumbles that she was glad that he had returned because their conversations about the couple had been driving her insane and walked away to her locker before one of the could further inquire. Of course that, again, things weren't exactly normal - being normal the plot - because once she closed her locker Stefan wasn't speaking with Elena. No, Stefan was right next to her and Elena, Caroline and Tom were giving them odd looks that didn't seem to disturb him.

"Uh, hello?"

He offers her a small smile. "Hey. Sorry for not tex-"

She shakes her head in a slight panic. She didn't want to explain to her friends that she was sure that were still observing them why was Stefan Salvatore speaking with her. "It's okay. Here." She shoves a notebook in his hands. "All that you missed from our shared classes!"

He furrows his eyebrows as he glances from the book to her. "What?"

"I really don't want to explain why we're friends... Bonding in the woods is hard to explain to people that... weren't in the woods when said bonding... occurred..." She finishes awkwardly.

Several things seemed to be going through his mind. First he furrowed his eyebrows, then he gapped. There was a part where he just seemed amused at her panic. He settled in a mocking frown. "Are you ashamed of our friendship?"

She rolls her eyes. "If I say yes will you go away?"

"You hurt my feelings," he teases her with the mocking frown in its place.

"Honestly this is not the time for your bizarre humor." She shakes her head trying to transmit her disapproval. "How am I supposed to explain this? Because they're going to ask..." She lowers her tone of voice, "We're are buddies, he shared his blood with me it would be rude otherwise? Not to mention our bonding sessions at the woods where one of us was bleeding? Or maybe I should mention the attempts of murder from our brothers... That does seem like good stories to share." She scoffs.

"Relax," he mumbles seemingly taking the situation more seriously. "I also used the homework excuse."

She sighs as a small smile appears on her lips. "Good! And, uh, do keep an eye on Zach, okay?"

He seemed alarmed. "Why?"

"You know why," she mutters. She then pats his arm energetically. "Don't forget to return me the book when you're finished!" With that she hurries to Caroline before he could ask or do something else.

"What was that?"

The trio had their eyes on her and would glance back to where she figured that Stefan was. "He wanted to know about English?" She looks to Elena. "Everything better?" Elena frowns as she glances to the ground.

The diversion worked and she had to fight the urge to loudly thank the heavens. "I don't know... We're going to speak later today," she adds with a slightly more upbeat tone.

"What was his excuse? It better be a good one too!" Caroline crosses her arms over her chest. "You better not forgive him before making him grovel."

With that Olivia relaxes knowing that for now she was safe from any questions. She was aware that at one point or another Caroline would revise the subject of Stefan 'asking' for her notes... She just hoped that she would believe whatever Olivia said, but then again, it wasn't like luck had been on her side ever since she got on TVD.

She was home, listening to Daphne rant about Jeremy's behavior as they had lunch - something that everyone in the household was already tired of - when she realized that maybe she had completely ruined everything - or saved, she couldn't really tell. Damon wasn't controlling Caroline so how was he supposed to escape? Was there even someone he was going to control? Was he doomed? Or was Zach going to be the one to set him free? She starts nibbling her bottom lip as guilt gnaws her insides. Had she condemned Zach's life?

She hadn't realized that the kitchen was in silence or that she was having a full blown panic attack. "Fred?"

She was playing God with people's lives and she really didn't have that right... How could someone deal with that pressure? What if she made everything exponentially worse? How was even she supposed to make it better? It wasn't like she really trusted anyone around since they all seemed to have their own agendas - okay, some had somewhat pure intentions while others were... misguided. Why her? Why was she in an universe that would ended up killing her? What possibly could have happened for her to end here?

"Look at me sweetie," Daphne coos as she grabs her hands. She blinks as she realizes that not only was she hyperventilating but her whole body was shaking. "Now breathe with me. In and out."

"What is happening," Alex mumbles with a distressed tone.

Daphne glances in his direction. "She's having a panic attack," she says with a calm tone of voice. "And you aren't helping." She turns to Olivia. "Just breathe sweetie, you're doing fine." She closes her eyes and tries to slow down her breathing. She could faintly hear her brothers moving. "Just like that," Daphne encourages. "In and out."

The fact that no one else was speaking and that Daphne was speaking calmly to her did help. "Are you feeling better?"

She looks to Tom and nods. "What happened?"

She glances to the three faces that had their eyes trailed on her making her stress spike again. Daphne shakes her head. "No, no. It's okay... Uh, how about you go to your room rest and we clean this up. No chores for you today."

It wasn't the ideal solution - soon enough someone would be on her case again - but at least for now she would have peace. "Thank you."

"You're staying," Daphne says sternly and when she glances back she realizes that Alex had tried to follow her.

Maybe she had done something horrible in her past because she was wrong in thinking that going to her bedroom would give her peace - even if it would only last hours. She had been lying on her bed, trying to distract herself from thinking just how fucked up her life really was when her phone started to ring. Seeing Stefan's name flash did nothing to ease the stress she was feeling, if anything it increased it exponentially. She rapidly understood that the vampire would leave her alone because even if she hadn't answered his call the first six times he tried, he seemed hell bent in speaking with her. Really, he didn't know how to take a hint.

"What is it?" She mutters tiredly.

"Damon attacked Zach," he deadpans. "How did you know?"

She closes her eyes. "I don't like to be the person to say, I told you so but _I told you so_."

"Olivia-"

She interrupts him not feeling in the mood to hear whatever he wanted to tell her. "Just get him out of the house before he goes **permanently**. And please, leave me alone... I'm not having a good day."

"Olivia," he mumbles with a stern tone.

"Good bye Stefan." With that she disconnects the phone.

He called a couple more of times before realizing that she wouldn't pick up and then seemingly gave up. She knew that he would eventually ambush her but she was aware that for now he'd be busy dealing with Elena so she'd have time.

She laughs bitterly as she thinks about how now she was avoiding people - as if she didn't have enough to worry about. Caroline and Tom regarding the possible conversation she had with Stefan - that she seriously hoped that never reached Alex's ears or else something dramatic and stupid would most definitely take place - Alex and his many questions about what exactly did she know that she was barely managing to avoid; her family and inquiries about why she had a panic attack, and last but not least, Stefan's questions about her supposed _visions_ of the future. Just how was she supposed to deal with all this shit?

Apart from having little to no luck Olivia realized that if things could go wrong they would. It started with Stefan calling her at ungodly hours to not only warn her that Damon had gotten away but to somehow try to guilt trip her into sharing more details of what his brother was up to. That conversation was cut short because of Elena making a drastic entrance and Stefan in a rather startled - and most definitely rude considering that he had woken her up from a somewhat peaceful slumber - manner disconnecting the call abruptly. That wasn't even the worst of it. Sure, that made her mentally prepare for somehow being roped into somehow aiding her and trying to come up with ways to avoid it but what ended up happening was much worse.

The day started with Alex waking her up. She'd be lying if she said that she didn't automatically knew that something was wrong... It was clear by his posture that Alex Jackson wasn't in a good mood and that the source of his anger was possibly her. Olivia didn't know exactly what had cause him to shake her violently or why he was glaring with his hands clenched and his body slightly trembling. There were several possibilities that went from not sharing what had induced her panic attack on the previous day to the discovery that she and Stefan Salvatore had been speaking somewhat frequently. Sure, she couldn't really come up with something that would make someone literally tremble in rage but if Olivia had learned something it was that whenever Alex got angry, he got severely pissed off. He didn't seem to possess a middle ground when it came to his rage. Now an enraged Alex was something that would make most worry - and she did worry about what could have she possibly done to make him lose his plot... But, the cherry in her seemingly shitty life was the fact that he was merely glaring at her without elaborating why he had woken her up at 5:30 in the morning nor why was he pissed off.

"Am I supposed to guess what put you in that state?"

Her tone hadn't been mocking nor angry. She knew not to add to the fire. It seemed that it didn't matter that she had spoken calmly to him, he acted as if she had slapped him across the face. "Are you fucking with me now?" To say that she was startled would be the same to say that hell was lukewarm. Never in the time that she had **become** Olivia Jackson had Alex spoken with her like that. For a while she merely gaps with her eyes widen in surprise as she tries to understand what was originating such hostility. "Do you know how many people died yesterday?" With his words she merely closes her eyes as she understands his point. Damon had broken free like had happened on the show, things hadn't changed that much from what had happened in the show… that meant that teenagers had died in the Cemetery. "You fucking knew? I can't believe this." He groans in anger. "This has to be a nightmare of some kind… Fuck, this can't really be happening."

"Liam..."

He snarls. "Don't." He was looking at her as if she was the worst person in the entire universe. "Who is the vampire? If it's not Stefan who the fuck is killing people?" He narrows his eyes.

If she had previously regretted ever opening her big mouth to Alex... it was nothing in comparison to what she was feeling now. She looks at him sadly. "I'm not going to tell you... Let me deal with it," she mumbles as she gets up. She was once again stressing out to the point that she would probably have a panic attack, but she had to check things, or rather, people... person... Vicki Donovan.

"Are you out of your fucking mind?!" He yells. He started pacing, clenching and unclutching his fists with his jaw tightly closed. She could tell that he was doing his best not to lose his mind completely and thrashing her room. He suddenly stops and looks to her. There was a mixture of disappointment, disgust and rage swirling in his eyes. "What the fuck are you doing? Did you really lose your mind Fred? This isn't a fucking game, people are dying... we could be next! Just give me the fucking name and I'll make sure that it gets to the hands of the council without anyone knowing it was us..."

"I can't do that." She couldn't, there was so much to come and Damon's death wouldn't really change it... besides, at one point he'd change, sort of. Then there was also the thing that she didn't know what would happen if he died, it could make bigger catastrophes to Mystic Falls...

He gaps as if he didn't believe she had just told him that. "You can't? You can't?!" he groans again. "Oh, you completely lost your mind." He narrows his eyes. "What's to prevent me from going to Cass and telling her?"

"You promised," she states in panic. "You promised Liam, this would stay between us!"

"Yeah? I didn't think that it would lead to you condoning murder... While you're doing whatever it is that you think you're doing people are dying," he says through his gritted teeth. "Your hands are bloody Fred, dripping with blood because you can stop this and-"

She slaps him. By the looks on their faces one would think that he was the one that had slapped her. "Get out," she mumbles.

"Fred..."

"I don't care. Tell Cassandra, do whatever the fuck it is that you want but I want you out and I want you out now!"

He gaps. "I didn't mean-"

"Out!" She screeches.

She narrows his eyes. "This is the last time," he mutters. "He kills someone else and I'm going to Cassandra and I'll tell her everything... Fuck the consequences. You might think that you know what you're doing but you don't. Clearly." With that he turns his back and leaves her bedroom.

She was fully aware that his reaction was expected given the circumstances. Things had been rocky with the discovery that she was aware that Stefan was a vampire and that there was a second one causing mayhem... She hadn't exactly been forthcoming with him - nor she did she feel like she could be given the reactions he had - and she was aware that it was a matter of time till he lost his patience with her. Alex wasn't by nature a patience person so in a way she had expected something of the sort to happen, however she hadn't expected this. It wasn't like he was wrong, or rather, completely wrong. The blood, in a way, was on her hands. She had previous knowledge that people were going to die and she had done little to nothing to prevent it. Okay, she made sure that Damon was out of Caroline's path - possibly condemning someone else to take her place - and had perhaps saved Vicki's and Zach's lives but was it enough? She didn't really know how many teenagers had died in Damon's hand last night but she did know that it was more than two (the currently tally of lives that she _might_ have saved). It also didn't help that Mystic Falls would get a rather high death rate in the coming times and now, because of Alex's words, she felt like that blood was on her hands... It was impossible for her to prevent it even if she did everything in her power, so many people were going to die. On that moment she felt like she was drowning in the blood of all of the possible victims of the supernatural inhabitants.

How was she supposed to deal with this? She wasn't that good of a person - that much had been made crystal clear even before Alex's outburst - and even if she was fairly smart, her plans weren't that good nor was she willing to risk her life to make sure that they became that good like becoming a vigilante (or babysitter) so people didn't die possibly condemning her to death in their place. She was fucked one way or another and she had no direction nor guidance to know what was the right way of dealing with this. If anything this whole thing was making her feel pathetic.

She cleans her tears before blowing up the candle that Alex had lit so their siblings didn't hear their argument. After quickly gathering her clothes she dresses herself. She had to get out of the house before she stumbled on one of her siblings and find a way to make things a bit better. A way to wipe out the guilt she was feeling. She had to see if Vicki was alright - she really needed a win and maybe if Vicki was alright she'd feel a bit better... less guilty - and decide if she should come clean to Stefan or not. Those thoughts quickly disappear. If Alex, who knew little to nothing of what was going on reacted like this when things went wrong, she could only imagine the horror that would happen when Stefan - and god forbid! - Damon when something endangered Elena. She could possibly pay with her life and as if was, she already felt pressured enough. Oh, she wasn't cut out for this shit.

Her plan was somewhat successful. She managed to leave the house without coming in contact with most of its inhabitants, apart from Tom that almost chased her as he tried to make sense of why was she looking like someone had killed her puppy. She also learned that Vicki Donovan wasn't in the hands of Damon - she had gone there and was partially surprised when she found both of the Donovan siblings awake. Apparently the news of Damon's _feast_ had already been spread and Vicki was now suffering from survivor's guilt. She had barely utter her excuses of wanting to check on the older sibling, when said girl tossed her arms around her body and started crying. Whatever relief she had hoped to find didn't come and little did she know that not even an hour later - when she was leaving the Donovan's household - would she feel even worse than when she was in her bedroom being scolded by the youngest Jackson.

She had been on her way to the school building trying to come up with a plan - even half or a third of a plan would be good enough - to deal with this mess when Stefan called her. Despite what she had done in the previous day, she quickly answered his call only to have her already fucked up day worsen.

"He took Jeremy. Did you know that?"

The accusation in his tone made her feel guilty. Not because she knew - even if in retrospective she should have predicted since on the past week Daphne vented a lot about Jenna and her issues with said teenager - but because her tries (if one could call what she had been doing **trying** ) of making things better could be doing the exact opposite. The feeling didn't disappear but another became stronger. Even if in a way this could all be blamed on her since she had meddled, Stefan Salvatore wasn't exactly innocent. Sure, her warning had been vague and not exactly what she qualify as persistent but she **had** warned him. She had told him that once Damon broke free he'd be pissed off and using Jeremy was a brilliant move - in an evil genius kind of way - to not only make sure that Stefan would comply with his demands but further endanger his relation with Elena. She didn't know whether to praise Damon or to stake him - if only because he was making her feel beyond shitty.

"Do not," she mutters as the feeling of rage becomes even more prominent. "What happened to _he won't break free_?" When he doesn't reply she scoffs. "I did warn you Stefan." She sighs as she recalls someone else that had perish that the hands of Damon's tantrum. "Is Zach...?"

"No," he mumbles with a much more gentle tone. "After almost snapping his neck a second time... I convinced Zach to go on vacations till I left town..."

The guilt she was feeling was so much that despite knowing that Zach was alive and kicking... she felt no relief. "At least you listened to that," she comments snidely. "To make this day even better if your brother kills someone else I'm in for a world of trouble. Liam decided that your brother's _snacks_ are painting my hands a lovely shade of blood and that if I don't give his name so he can be properly dealt with-"

He groans. "Of course. Because this wasn't enough."

"It never is," she says with a sickly sweet tone. "So get to it and get his fucking ring while I'm going to make sure that Jeremy doesn't die."

"You are?"

She didn't like the surprise in his tone... it was as if he expected her to do nothing while someone was in danger. While that might be true - in the general sense - Jeremy was also important (or would be) and even if he wasn't, today she was feeling so guilty that dying to save someone didn't seem that bad of a deal. "No, I'm going to join your brother and paint the town red," she deadpans.

"I didn't-"

She didn't care for his excuses. "Just get the ring."

She didn't even have plan as she made way to the Boarding House nor knew what to expect. In the show Damon and Vicki had been dancing and drinking but somehow she didn't really expect to find Jeremy doing the same. She just hoped that Vicki's previous fate hadn't somehow became his because the implications (and the consequences) wouldn't be pleasant, that much she was sure. She groans again in a mixture of desperation and frustration... She wasn't cut for this.

Despite not knowing what to expect she was surprised when she entered the house. Once she had opened the door she found Damon siting in the sofa with a passed out Jeremy lying on the ground in what seemed a rather uncomfortable position. The vampire seemed to be deeply amused by her sudden appearance and made no motion to her as she rushed to Jeremy - on that moment she prayed to whatever made this shit happen that Jeremy was alive.

"Tell me that you didn't kill him," she mumbles as she tries to find a pulse.

"He's alive and kicking," he says pleasantly. "Not literally kicking," he drawls as he gestures to the passed out boy. "But you get the picture."

He did have a pulse even if his neck was somewhat... torn. "You didn't turn him?" She couldn't see any traces of blood on the teenager's mouth but she didn't exactly know what had happened previously to her arrival.

"My brother and I are the only undead haunting the town." She narrows her eyes, for some reason he seemed to be having the time of his life. "I didn't know that you and my brother were thick as thieves," he trails off. "Or did he send you here as a gift? Like, your life for little Gilbert's?"

She was suddenly rethinking all of her decisions. Not only the ones since she started living in Mystic Falls… but everything that she had ever decided. "He's getting your ring."

He grins. "Oh, I know that. If he doesn't his girlfriend's brother is a meal." He seemed even more amused. "And you are the desert." He makes a grand gesture of licking his lips which immediately made her want to harm him. She didn't because she had to conserve her magic, if she was a traditional witch, this conversation would go much differently. "This doesn't seem like the traditional rescue party..." He trails off as he gets up. She warily observes him refiling his glass. "And if so, what are you doing here Glinda?"

She scoffs. "Maybe making sure that you don't cause more problems?"

"Me?" He looks to her as if he was completely innocent and like she was insane to accuse him. "My brother is the one to blame. Not only did he steal from me but he also poisoned me." He takes a sip of his drink. "You should really rethink your alliance... or whatever it is that you two have going on... He's not all that he seems to be."

"Of course," she mumbles with a sweet tone. She was completely fed up with the Salvatore's antics and the day had just begun. "You are a victim to your brother's evil schemes."

He smirks. "Precisely... so don't be coy," he mumbles with a somewhat excited expression. "Are you going to tell me what exactly is going on between you and my brother?"

She didn't reply because on that moment Jeremy regained his senses. She doesn't have time to feel relief - not only because she didn't have to deal with Damon weird questioning but because Jeremy was seemingly fine (or as fine as one could be after an encounter with a vampire) - because he immediately lost his plot. He shoved her away from him after she tried to help him get up, making her stumble into the couch and dangerously close to the currently deranged vampire that could kill her before she was able to defend herself. If that wasn't enough for her to give her the urge of smacking him repeatedly, the fact that he was now yelling at Damon definitely set in stone that urge.

"Stay away from me monster!" Before Damon got any ideas of snapping her neck or draining her, she puts space between them. "Are you like him? Are you going to... suck my blood?"

Damon rolls his eyes. "I liked you better when you were passed out."

"Calm down," she mumbles as she tries to walk to him without fully turning her back on Damon.

Deranged Jeremy throws a lamp in her direction that she was barely able to dodge. "Stay away!"

While she narrows her eyes to the hysteric teenager, Damon laughs. It wasn't an 'oh, this is a good joke' kind of laugh but more of a 'this is the funniest shit I've ever seen' kind of laugh. She only narrows her eyes in absolute distaste. Oh, really, she wasn't cut out for this shit. "Maybe you are more entertaining than I thought."

"I'm going to leave."

Damon was no longer amused and now Olivia was once again rethinking all of the decisions she had ever thought. "You're going to stay here," she says with the calmest tone she could conjure. The teenager must have felt like she was threatening him because he was now holding one of the chairs. "You're going to calm down and stay here, quietly."

"I don't think he's going to listen," Damon mocks as he gets up. "And, well, it's been a few hours since I had a taste."

"Bloody hell," she mutters as her body tenses. She tried to prepare to whatever was going to unfold, because one thing was sure. Something was going to happen because Jeremy wouldn't remain there by his own choice and Damon wouldn't let him leave.

With Damon's words Jeremy freaked out even more. There was maybe a second where he seemed to pounder his choices - mainly whether to throw the chair at one of them or to run to the door - and then things were hectic. Jeremy decided that Damon was the bigger threat and proceeded to chuck the chair at him. It failed the intended target knocking in its place one of the side tables. As she heard glass breaking and Jeremy yelling in either distress or in frustration, Damon was now attacking. He had latched on Jeremy's neck and the teenager was clearly struggling. In turn Olivia attacked Damon that despite screeching at the pain managed to continue gripping onto Jeremy - making said teenager continue his powerless wails.

"Let him go Damon," she demands once she stops harming him.

Damon licks his lips as his grip on the human bow slackens. Not that it seemed that it was doing Jeremy any good, he looked like he was about to pass out again. "What if I don't?"

"Then I'll have to hurt you," she deadpans ignoring his smirk. "I thought that it was obvious."

Olivia would end up concluding that she was quite possibly one of the stupidest persons that had ever roamed Mystic Falls. Because while she was 'chatting' with Damon, he had made a plan to take her out of the picture. Sure, she wasn't continuously harming him because unlike others she didn't have an endless source of magic juice but she should have at least predicted that he was going to attack her and grab something to defend herself with or make a plan to prevent becoming his prey. She hadn't finished saying the word 'obvious' when he rammed his shoulder into her and sunk his fangs into her neck.

Despite the situation she found herself in - Damon having left go of her neck so he could loudly groan at the pain she was once again causing her - she ended up being lucky. Stefan finally got there and removed his brother from her. His _vampire face_ made a brief appearance, something that did not really surprised her given the amount of blood that was actually in the room, but he did not lose control. In the midst of all that mess what did surprise her was when Elena entered the room yelling Jeremy's name. Despite the obvious changes in the plot it seemed that Elena ended up discovering that Stefan - and Damon - were vampires... she did wonder exactly what had he told Elena to explain her presence there since the girl did not seem neither surprised nor scared... not that she had really given her any attention.

"Let's not do this again," Damon mumbles to her as he shakes off Stefan from him. He narrows his eyes to his brother before extending his hand. "My ring..." Stefan scoffs before tossing it to him. "Good boy."

Elena, who had started weeping at her brother's state, was holding Jeremy's head against her chest. "Jeremy, Jeremy."

Damon waves his hand dismissively. "He's fine."

"Fine?!"

Ignoring the conversation (if one thought that Elena calling Damon a sociopath counted as one) that Damon and Elena were having as Stefan gave his blood to Jeremy and tried to explain to Elena the danger of having his blood in the teenagers system, she tries to get up. She quickly disregards that idea since she felt a little faint and somewhat crawled to a wall so she could sit. She pinches the bridge of her nose as she wonders just how much more worse could this day get. She was currently bleeding from her neck, courtesy of the one and only Damon Salvatore - she really understood why half of the people on the show had wanted him dead, he was an asshole and even though she knew that it would get better... she still wanted to plunge something in his stomach and twist it, maybe then he'd get the clue that **this shit** was not acceptable. So, apart from bleeding from her neck, her back hurting from being tackled into the ground she was now, joy of all joys, listening to one Elena Gilbert cry as she scolded the vampire. It wasn't like he deserved it, like previously stated, Olivia was all on board of making the asshole suffer for his wrong doings but it wasn't like he was going to listen or like it wouldn't make things worse. If anything he was faintly amused as he heard her scold him as he drank. In the midst of all this, Stefan was tending to the passed out teenager on the floor sparing a few worried glances in her direction as she remained sat in the ground. She knew that once everything was alright he'd turn to her what she didn't know was how was she going to deal with the inevitable conversation she was sure he would want to have - she hadn't planned that far ahead, well, if she was honest she couldn't claim to have planned anything at all... if she had she wouldn't have been in this position and if they knew that, she was aware that whatever conversation he and Elena would most definitely have would be ten times worse.

Her thoughts come to a halt when Jeremy wakes up. Whereas Damon was smirking, Stefan, Elena and she were looking to him with worry. Sure, they were all worrying about different things: Elena and Stefan were mainly worrying about his welfare (which to some extent she also was), even if the latter was concerned with the fact that his girlfriend's brother now knew about vampires; Olivia was worrying about what it would mean to her everything that had happened because this encounter could get to her _family_ and she was sure that it would be hell to pay if they learned what had happened.

"What," he mumbles as he blinks his eyes.

"You are okay," Elena tells him as she proceeds to hug him. "Oh, I'm so glad that you are okay... I couldn't lose you Jer."

"There was," he mumbles as he tries to touch his neck. "My neck and Olivia didn't let me go..."

Elena looks to the girl that immediately frowns. "I just didn't want him to attack you," she states defensibly. "You threw a lamp at me."

Jeremy was now gapping as he tried to put distance between them - which was ridiculous since she was no way close to him. "That happened?!" He was hysteric. "Oh god, that happened?!"

"Shut up little Gilbert," Damon quips with a grin. "No one here is deaf."

That obviously didn't help not that Olivia was under the impression that Damon was particularly trying to aid those two. She sighs as Jeremy pushes his sister away and grabs the lamp that had survived the earlier events. He was now with his back pressed against a wall as he looked at them - Elena and Stefan included - as if they wanted to harm him.

"Jeremy calm down," Elena says somewhat sweetly. "I'm not going to let anyone harm you."

Damon merely snorts. "I don't know..." he drawls.

"Damon!"

Damon gets up making everyone tense. After what seemed a tired sigh he rolls his eyes and walks to the teenager. "Calm down, there's no danger." Immediately the lamp on his hand falls to the ground.

"What are you doing to him?!"

Stefan starts soothingly rubbing her back. "He's helping..." It didn't sound like the younger Salvatore particularly believed his words. "I'll explain it to you later."

"You will forget what happened here," Damon compels Jeremy.

"I will forget what happened here," he repeats.

As if the entire thing was a joke he turns to Elena. "See, all's fine." He turns to Jeremy again. "Once you wake up you'll feel amazing. FYI, stop hanging at cemeteries or it's going to get you killed."

Olivia wasn't the only one that was confused. Why was Jeremy at the cemetery? "What?!"

"Now sleep," Damon adds making Jeremy's body fall on the ground.

With that they resumed arguing again.

If the physical pain and possible nightmares for a foreseeable future weren't enough for her to feel that this was quite possibly the worst day she had so far, she was now fully aware of how haywire the plot actually was... Okay, maybe not to the point that what was happening was completely foreign but enough to make her doubt if she could fully predict what was going to take place next. She didn't even know if she should feel even more guilty or not - she was sure that if Elena Gilbert knew everything... especially the alternative to this, she would be in for a scolding - since, well, at least nobody had died today... and probably wouldn't die as a result of Damon wanting his ring back, like it had happened with Vicky. Maybe feeling good that she had managed to save Vicki's life wasn't exactly the direction that things should be going - someone else had gotten hurt - but at least it wasn't a complete and total disaster. Or at least that was what she was trying to convince herself because if not the guilt that she was feeling today would definitely make her drown. The same guilty that had made her play hero and come to the boarding house to _play_ _hero_ with Damon Salvatore.

She sighs loudly as she rests her head over her knees. Her life was going to be incredibly short if she didn't find a smarter way to deal with all this bullshit. Not that she **really** wanted to deal with any of this because she definitely hadn't been cut out to play a part in this insane universe.

"Are you even listening to me?" Elena screeches making her raise her head. Elena's eyes were trailed on Damon and she faintly wondered why the girl was yelling at him. Again, it wasn't like he didn't deserve it but just by looking around it was clear that he had no qualms about hurting people. "How could you?"

Damon scoffs as he approaches Olivia. She sends him a warning glance once she realizes that he was heading on her direction. She had enough of him to last a lifetime and honestly she just wanted him to leave her the fuck alone. "Damon," Stefan mutters as he flashes in front of her.

"Relax," Damon says mockingly. "I'm not going to hurt Glinda." He forcibly pats his brother shoulder and bends down. Stefan remains in his position, partially between them as he observed his brother. "You're looking pathetic," he informs her with a grin and takes another sip of his drink. "Seems like I did a number on you. You must be in a lot of pain," he concludes.

There was a scowl on her face as narrowed her eyes. "Your deductive power is astounding... You should change your name to Sherlock."

"Snarky." He smirks. Bites his wrist and offers to her.

Before his wrist could actually come close to her face, Stefan grabs it. "What are you playing at?"

"Make her look less pathetic so her family doesn't try to murder me." He removes his wrist and grins as Olivia gaps. "I got some of yours and I'm offering some of mine. Only fair, right?"

"You can't possibly trust him," Elena mutters with her arms crossed over her chest.

Olivia scoffs as she grabs his wrist. "Let's just get this over with. I'd like to go home and rethink my life choices."

"You're amusing." While Stefan and Elena look to her with varying degrees of apprehension and worry, Damon smirks and winks his eyes to the pair. "If you ever want to donate blood..."

She cleans her mouth as she fights the urge to vomit. She really hoped that this wouldn't become a thing... who was she kidding, the drama had barely started and she had already consumed vampire blood twice after being bitten by the same vampire. She had to stay away from Damon Salvatore or she wouldn't live to see the end of the year. "Not going to happen."

He shrugs before getting up. "You know where to find me Glinda." He grins to the others. "You have fun with that, I'm going out."

Once he was out of the room, Elena exhales loudly and her body partially relaxes. "We gotta do something about him... He have to make him stay away-"

"I'm also going," Olivia mumbles as she gets up not being in the mood to deal with them. She still felt a little woozy but was overall well...at least physical wise, mentally it was a completely different story.

"What? You can't," Elena mutters with disbelief plastered in her face. "We need to-"

"I need to shower," she interrupts Elena. "I need to get home and clean all traces that this happen because if my family suspects-"

"Did you not see what happened?"

She narrows her eyes. Elena was starting to get on her nerves. "I was here," Olivia points out. "Did you forget that my neck was torn open?" She gestures for the partially dried blood on her neck. "Does this ring any bells?"

"We need to calm down," Stefan says as he walks to Elena. He rubs her arms gently as he glances in Olivia's direction. "She's right, we need to talk..."

"He hurt him," Elena mumbles as she looks to the teenager that was still passed out on the ground.

She rolls her eyes. "Elena a lot of people were hurt by Damon... He got the better end of it."

"How can you say that?!"

"He's alive," Olivia yells back feeling completely fed up. After the conversation she had with Alex the only thing she could think of where the people that had died. "He's alive and others aren't. You should be thankful."

Elena gaps. "Thankful?! Are you kidding me? He was hurt!"

"That's it!" Olivia throws her arms in the air in exasperation. "I'm out."

"Olivia," Stefan calls her trying to see if she would stop.

She didn't. "I said I'm **out**."


End file.
